It was a crowded train, somewhere in the UK. Samantha Wench, A single mom was travelling with her 3-year-old son Rylan. A man in a hat and glasses was silently observing them.
It is difficult to keep a toddler engaged these days. So Samantha was doing everything she could to make the journey pleasant for Rylan. She was playing with him, singing to him, and all the while, the man kept on observing her. After a while, she made room for another passenger. At a point, Rylan coughed, and she told him to cover his mouth with her hands. Eventually, Rylan went to sleep on her lap.
At a station, the man with the hat got up, handed her a note making a pretence that she had dropped it out of her purse. She knew that he was lying, but accepted it anyway. Inside it, he had written something about her parenting style. She read it, and there were tears in her eyes.
The note read:
‘Have a drink on me, you’re a credit to your generation, polite and teaching the little boy good manners.
Attached to the note was a £5 note, asking her to have a drink on him.
Samantha was touched by his kind gesture. According to her, she did not do anything different. She had just played with her son and kept him busy. The very fact that the stranger complimented her made her feel good, and she decided to trace him!
Samantha went online trying to find the benevolent man. After a talk show appearance, she found out the identity of the mysterious man. Ken Sunders, 50, is a manager at NHS. He was returning from a training when he saw Samantha, a woman as old as his daughter. He was quite impressed by the way in which she interacted with her kid. He felt like complimenting her in some way, hence the note. He wishes that his daughter ends up being a good mother like Samantha some day.
Why should you do something like this?
It just takes a single act of kindness to make someone’s day! But we, as parents, have a better reason to do so. Our kids observe us every moment, and that is shaping their early personality. If you do not respect someone, neither would they. Here are a few things you can do to ensure that your kids pick up the right things
- Manner maketh man. Teaching them good manners is one thing, letting them observe you behave is another. The latter is going to have a bigger impact on them. So be very careful how you behave with those who may not deserve your respect. Ultimately, manners are not taught, they are cultured.
- Help even those who cannot help you back. When your boy sees you holding the door to the lift, or getting up to give a seat to an old lady in the train, he understands that you value those things. Children need both validation as well as approval from parents. So he will adopt these practices, partly to please you, but also because he thinks that you value such acts.
- Give complements. The world has come to a place where pleasantries are not exchanged even in daily conversations. And it is making human interaction dry. When you see someone doing something good, go and compliment that person. Tell the chef that the food was good. You might just end up making his day.
- Volunteer. Enlist yourself for the community as much as you can. It will ensure that your kids have an interaction with like-minded people. In the world where the virtual presence is becoming more valuable, it is increasingly essential that they make some real friends! Not to mention, the immense pleasure they would get by helping someone in need.
Sammie has decided to pay it forward. It just takes an act of kindness to make the world a better place!
The story of kindness is a welcome change from the gloom we see everywhere. The world could use a few more such interactions!
Source: Little things, Daily Express
Also read: A father’s letter to his newborn son
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