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Tuesday, October 14, 2008

I've Always Depended on the Kindness of Strangers

Rather than wait around for Hidden City to get out of work to drive me to publix, I walked. I walked to the library, returned Kitchen Confidential and checked out the incredibly apropros How Did I Get Here? by Barbara De Angelis. Then I walked to the bank to deposit a check so I can pay my electric bill before they shut me off. Of course I was 1 minute late so I had to deposit it in the ATM and wait till tomorrow to get the cash out to pay it but FPL is still powering things for now. Then I walked all the way to 90th and Biscayne to go to Publix. I live very close to Barry University to give you an approximation of distance. I got dog food and the ingredients to make chicken marsala, stuffed most of it in my Herve Chapelier bag I normally reserve for days on the beach, and slung a plastic publix bag over my shoulder as I began the trek home. I was at 103rd and 6th avenue when I felt like I must just sit and rest. But I kept walking. This isn't the gym, and I wasn't on a treadmill. This was life and I needed to get the fuck home and feed my dogs. I kept walking. Then, even though the end was roughly in sight, about 7 more blocks or so, the plastic bag was ripping something awful into my arm, sweat was rolling down my cleavage, and my tits kept trying to bounce themselves free of my bra and my hindsight-is-20/20-a-little-too-low-cut-for-walking-far shirt. They were pulling the same game on the way there but at least then I had hands to tuck them back in. A car pulled up next to me with an elderly woman inside. She had a strong accent that strangely enough was not Latin, but something like Polish or Russian, something that comforted me. She asked me if I needed a ride. I greatfully accepted. Violet lives right around the corner from where she picked me up, but said this to me that still gives me the chills remembering. "I see you and I am reminded of my friend. I don't know why but you just like her. I think if my friend walking with groceries and I think I must help."


Violet, thank you. You will never know how much that small act of kindness meant to me. I encourage you all to try being kind to strangers. The pureness of the act creates some sort of tap into the universal energy source for both giver and recipient. In unenlightened terms, it's a win-win....

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