Another small act of kindness...

[Samui Bodoh]

Morning All

 

Eagle-eyed islanders might recall that I posted (December 2020) about a kind gentleman who picked me up at five AM when I had run over a piece of glass that sliced open my bicycle tire. In that post, I pledged to try to be kinder and more thoughtful of my fellow islanders as the year had been truly awful. 

 

I am not entirely sure why (it was an anonymous Internet comment!), but that post stuck in the back of my brain and resurfaced at odd moments. Yes, I actually have tried, and (informally) tried to make a stranger smile every single day. I was taught that holding a door open for someone behind you is a polite thing, and for the last eight months made redoubled efforts to bestow that minor politeness. When faced with people trying to turn their cars/bikes against the flow of traffic, and even more importantly people (or animals) trying to nip across the street, I have stopped my motorcycle and gestured to the following vehicles to do the same. I have made a serious stab at paying compliments to the women, both foreign and Thai, that I know as it genuinely seems to be appreciated (my traditional method of making women laugh, asking them on a date, might cause lethal hilarity when combined with a mild or asymptomatic case of Covid). In every shop, from big ones like Tesco/Big C to the smallest little 'holes-in-the-walls', I have tried to have a laugh with the staff working there, even if it was tiny and not particularly funny. There are many, many more of the little things in life that can cause a small smile, but you already know them.

 

Yes, the above are small things, but I have always felt that the big things take care of themselves and it is the small things that matter. And, they do. Whether it has been a small 'lift of the finger' off the steering wheel by a driver, a kindly smile from someone following behind, an acknowledging laugh and smile on the extremely rare occasion that I actually said something humourous, the tilt of the head as someone reached the other side of the street safely, or the slight 'raising of the eyes' and/or the 'jutting of the chin' recognizing the attempt; it has brought a welcome smile to my face.

 

The other day was the penultimate small moment that I am still grinning about, even if it is just internally. 

 

I was at Tesco and was joining the checkout line to purchase my stuff when I noticed a young woman holding a small child in one arm and a single item in the other, so I waved her ahead of me. Now, I would prefer to think that it was a chivalrous gesture worthy of Sir Lancelot himself, and one that would echo through time eternal, but the true fact is that I barely even saw her as I was (proverbially) scratching my... er...  head trying to remember what I had forgotten. Honestly, I am not even sure that I realized that I had done it, and when the opportunity presented itself, I just proceeded to place my stuff on the checkout counter, tap my foot and wait. Then, just after she paid her bill, she turned to say 'Thanks!' and when our eyes met, I could see that she was both grateful and extremely happy; I knew that look, and it was the look of someone having a terrible day receiving an unexpected and small act of kindness. Well, it just made my day that I had put a smile on her face , and it must have shown in my eyes as I could see it reflected in hers. Yup, to pretend that I wear both a long scarf and a beret on a hot summer's day, I'll say that it was a cacophonous reverberation of happiness; I took great pleasure at the joy in her eyes, and she took pleasure from the clear happiness returned in mine, which in turn reinforced the pleasure in her eyes that was further mirrored in mine, ad infinitum.

 

I have no idea who she was, what she really looked like or where she lived; the best that I can do is that I think she was Thai, but I am not even certain about that. And, it doesn't matter; It was simply a very nice, very happy, and very human moment in troubled times.

 

Let me leave you with two parting thoughts. I hope everyone is happy, healthy, safe, appreciating the wonderful place we live in and appreciating the wonderful people who share it with us. Secondly, I offer a reminder of something that I am quite certain you already know; in these difficult and awful times, whatever you give will be magnified and returned many times over.

 

Cheers all

 

 

 

 

[1FinickyOne]

good for you - every little bit helps both the giver and receiver... 

[Rampant Rabbit]

20 minutes ago, Samui Bodoh said:

whatever you give will be magnified and returned many times over.

I  gave my  old  staff 800  baht a  day for the two  of them, in return they did as  little  as  humanly  possible and stole  my fish as  well as break  numerous  tools. Got rid  of them after just 4  weeks, on arrival she said  thank you for giving me this  opportunity. Huh I  thought , yeah and you just threw  it down the toilet.

[Tropicalevo]

2 hours ago, Samui Bodoh said:

the big things take care of themselves and it is the small things that matter.

Well done.

Your post sums up how I live as well. So many similarities in there.

Right down to the

3 hours ago, Samui Bodoh said:

making women laugh, asking them on a date, might cause lethal hilarity

Keep up the good work and live long and prosper. ????