A Lesson In Kindness

Kindness cannot be random. Either you, as a person, is kind and moved by other’s sorry plight or you are simply indifferent. It’s actually how much you are aware of your surroundings, how much you are grateful for what you have got in life and how much you are ready to give to others who do not have what you have.

Kindness germinates from empathy and generosity. By doing an act of kindness one should be able to enjoy a deep soul satisfaction and joy. In short, genuine kindness cannot be a calculated move.

A long, long time back, when I had just started working I remember an incident which is etched in my mind and shall remain so throughout my life.

Back from office I had deboarded the bus at the terminal when a torrential downpour greeted me. Tropical rains are blinding and pour like sheets. You are unable to see anything across that curtain of thick stream of water. In no time I was drenched as though I have just gotten out of a pool. The saree clung to the body. It was just impossible to walk when six yard of textile wound round your limbs in a serpentine coil.

I had to take a cycle rickshaw, the only one available, at the bus stand. The driver agreed to take me home to my surprise. From the bus stop to the house was a seven minutes walk. Usually, I strolled back home. It saved a few paisa and I was young so didn’t mind a little bit of physical exercise.

It wasn’t easy for the rickshaw puller to drive as well. Soon his lungi stuck to his legs making it difficult for him to paddle. Again and again he wiped his face with his wet hands so that he could see ahead. Thankfully, the roads were empty. But a seven minutes walk transpired into a fifteen minutes drive. The sky tore down as though it were the last day on planet Earth.

Reaching home it was time to pay. Those time rickshaw drive was the cheapest. I don’t recall the exact fare I paid but I told him to keep the change since he had taken so much pain to drive me down. The poor man was so happy by that small gesture! His face shone. He grinned broadly making it obvious that a few paise meant a lot to him.

I was amazed by his reaction. How could anyone be so happy with a few change? His unalloyed happiness bespoke of his level of contentment. We who earn more want more. Those who earn less are happy with the few benefits that they get occassionally out of turn.

Throughout my life I have seen several examples of such contentedness mostly amongst the so called have nots. I have always suffered from financial insecurity worrying about the future all the time. Those who do not think of saving much even for a red letter day and subsist on daily wages have no worry because they have nothing to lose.

My act of kindness was a lesson for me to be happy with what little I get without asking for it. It’s bonus distributed by God. Surrender and leave the rest to Him.