May 23, 2013

A Good Deed Should Never Go Unrewarded -- My Story About Good Karma

Tell us about the most surprising helping hand you've ever received. - Writing Prompt from The Daily Post

I am a big believer of karma -- do something nice for someone and someone will do something nice for you.  Maybe it was the way I was raised or just something that I acquired over time, but it's something I strongly believe in.  I try to do something nice for someone as often as I possibly can, not just to be rewarded in some way, but because I get a strong sense of pride when I help out.  I do many nice things for people but do not always get something in return, which is fine.  However I do have this story I always like to tell about someone who did something for me that restored my faith that there are nice and helpful people out there.

My friend Carole and I love to go on road trips.  We drive to North Carolina at least once a year, sometimes more often because we love that area and always enjoy our long, but fun, nine hour drives there.  Last year, on the way home, we were crossing into Delaware and were preparing to pay the Delaware Memorial Bridge toll.  As we got into the toll lane and handed the booth attendant our money, she advised us that the car in front of us had already paid for our toll.  My friend and I were in awe and very thankful since we are both on a limited budget and every penny counts.  As much as we tried, we couldn't catch up with the car to thank them, but I do remember tweeting a "Thank You" to the anonymous good Samaritan  even though I have no idea if they use Twitter or ever saw it.  I wish I could have thanked them for being so kind but I was never able to. A few days later when I was at Starbucks, this younger teenager was $1.25 short for her coffee, I gave it to her to help her out.  As they always say, A good deed should not go unrewarded, and because that anonymous person helped us out at the toll booth, I gave back to someone as well.