A Random Act of Kindness

Pam and Danny recently decided to put a garden in their yard.  They have been working for weeks to get everything set to start their little vegetable plants in the most perfect conditions possible.  They built a raised garden with treated wood and fencing and then they ordered a big load of topsoil to fill the box.  Ray and I volunteered to go over and help them move the soil from their driveway to the box.  It seemed like a HUGE task when we arrived.  Ray had a wheel barrow and Danny had a garden wagon that we were filling as fast as possible.  It seemed like the pile wasn't diminishing very quickly and as most of you know shoveling dirt and pushing a full wheel barrow time and time again is hard work.  Pam and Dan's neighbor has a little boy that plays with the kids his name is Nike - this little guy comes from a difficult background and sometimes he can be a real challenge for Pam to have around.  He came to the dirt pile with that mischievious look of a little boy who has found a gold mine.  Playing in that dirt was going to be so much fun!  As he stood there I started to talk to him about how hard we were working and how much we needed everyone's help to get the dirt in the garden.  I could tell that he was pondering something but I couldn't believe what happened next.  This little 5 year old ran home and got his plastic wheel barrow and toy shovel and came over to help us move the dirt.  No one asked him; he thought of it himself.  I made sure to tell him how great he was and I could tell that the praise was very welcome.  I know I shouldn't have been surprised after this little display of service from Nike.  But a few minutes later his grandpa showed up with his wheel barrow and a shovel and jumped right in to help us.  The dirt pile dimished much more quickly with all of the help and my heart was touched by these two neighbors and their willingness to help.   I truly appreciated this random act of kindness.

On a side note; the garden looked great and I am so excited for Pam and Danny to have the experience of growing their own food - there is nothing better than a fresh tomato, squash, pepper, cucumber...from your very own garden.  YUM!