One mother finds herself in a surprising situation when she volunteers to help an older disabled man at the park. She gives up her job as a breadwinner to help the stranger, not knowing what he will bring to their doorstep.
“Sorry, I’m late! I had to clean up after a patient vacated his room. Did Shaun wake up?”Samantha welcomed Dorothy to her home by opening the door. After finishing her night shift at the local nursing facility, she returned home that morning.
“Do you have to do this, darling? Look at you…you look so tired, but you barely rest. You keep running all day for us.”Dorothy was disappointed.
Samantha’s husband Josh died in a fire accident. Her life was thrown into chaos. Samantha was overwhelmed by her husband’s debts and needed to find a second job to support the family and keep their roof over their heads. Samantha worked part-time in the mornings as a nurse’s aid, while Samantha waited.
Her earnings enabled her to send Shaun, an eight-year-old boy, to school. She also purchased medicine for her mom and paid off her credit cards. Her struggles as a single mom continued to pile up, but nothing seemed sufficient.
Only for illustration purposes. Source: Pexels| Source: Pexels
“Shall we go?”Samantha asked her son. “Be a good boy…no fighting…I’ll pick you up from the stop at three sharp… Don’t go anywhere if I’m a bit late. I promise to be there on time, alright?”
Samantha arrived home every morning on time, despite all the exhaustion. She would take her son to school and take him to the bus stop.
With tears welling up in his eyes, Shaun hugged his mother. He understood how exhausted she was, and how desperately she needed to rest. He was shocked to learn that his mother had given up so much of her time in order to support their family.
There is no limit to the kindnesses you can do. Kindness requires a big heart.
Samantha said goodbye to her son and helped him board the school bus. “Gosh, it’s getting late!”She grumbled, and she ran home to get ready to start her day at an elite restaurant. Samantha waited there.
She was running behind, so she chose to take a shortcut through the park.
Only for illustration purposes. Source: Pexels| Source: Pexels
Samantha ran as fast to her feet as she could. “I must get to work fast, or my boss will ruin my day. He said there was a special booking for breakfast and inspection today. I must hurry.”
As Samantha ran across the park, she noticed a man named Francis who was a senior disabled man and was sitting in a chair enjoying the morning sunshine. The man was in a wheelchair and was enjoying the morning sunshine. Samantha ran past him, then she heard his faint voice calling for her.
“Lady…Hey, lady…You dropped your purse.”
Samantha reached for her purse and pulled it out of her pockets.
“Lady, it’s here…near my wheelchair…look down!”
Samantha walked towards the elderly man and noticed his purse.
“Oh, thank you so much!”She exclaimed.
Samantha noticed that the man was holding a water bottle and that he had a piece paper lying near his wheelchair. She took it. It was a grocery shopping list.
“Is this yours?”
“Oh, yes! Thank you, miss. I think it must have fallen from my coat,”Francis.
He was probably hungry. She noticed him and decided to take a closer look. She looked at her watch and saw that she was already late for work. However, she decided to thank him and run to the nearest supermarket.
A few moments later, she returned to Francis and gave him a bag with a week’s supply of groceries. He was shocked and sat for a while speechless before he started to speak.
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“What is this? Why did you buy me groceries, miss?”Francis exclaimed.
Samantha sat down next to him on the bench and exhaled deeply. “My mother always told me to return the favor when someone is kind. I just did that!”
Francis was last to remember tearing up when he grieved over the coffin of his deceased wife. He never again found the reason to cry after that. He couldn’t contain his tears at that moment.
“What is your name? And where is your house?”
“My name is Samantha, and I live with my son and mother in a little house at the end of this street!”
“Oh, I see! Glad to meet you, Samantha. And thanks for this. I’ll never forget your help!”
Samantha laughed and got up for her departure, when she received a call from her boss.
“G-Good morning, s-sir. I’m on my way.”
“Miss Samantha, it’s okay. You don’t have to take so much trouble. You’re FIRED for being late again.”Samantha was hung up by her boss, ruining her day and a portion of her bread-winning job.
“What happened, Samantha? Is everything alright?”Francis asked.
“My boss fired me. What do I do now? Finding another job is not that easy. I must go home now. I need to figure it out. It was nice meeting you, sir. Goodbye!”
Samantha wept her way home, cursing her destiny. She didn’t know how Francis showed up at her door a week later.
Only for illustration purposes. Source: Pexels| Source: Pexels
“Oh, hello, sir! Please come in!”Francis arrived at Samantha’s door in a wheelchair. He was wearing a fancy suit and looked nothing alike the way he appeared at the park yesterday.
Francis pushed his wheelchair into the living room. She watched nervously. He stopped and invited Samantha to join him for a small discussion—one that would go on to change her life completely.
Francis took out a file and a phone. He called Samantha’s home to call someone. A few minutes later, a lawyer came to the house to join in the discussion.
“Samantha, meet Alex, my lawyer,”Francis began. Samantha smiled shyly and nodded.
“Hello!”She said.
“My wife and I never had any children. We worked hard to build our fortune, and we were too old when we wanted to have a family.”
Samantha began to bite her lips out of anxiety. She was baffled.
Francis continued: “After she died ten years ago, I continued to establish and grow my business. I was successful. But I always wondered—who would take up after me? I have no friends or family. Then who will be my heir? I found the answer in the park last week!”
Samantha gasped heavily and puffed as her tears surged to her eyes.
“Alex, please read my will to Samantha and get her signature!”
Illustration purposes only. Source: Unsplash| Source: Unsplash
Francis was a long-time dreamer of moving into a nursing facility but was anxious about what would happen to his fortune. After meeting Samantha and seeing her kindness, Francis decided to leave his estate to her.
“Sir, what I did is just a small gesture of kindness. But I feel giving away your house and money to me is too much. Please, I cannot accept this.”
“Dear, you are like my daughter, and please understand…no act of kindness is big or small. It takes a big heart to be kind. If you regard me as your father, please accept it. I’ll be happy and live the rest of my life peacefully.”
Francis convinced Samantha, despite her reluctance to sign the papers. In recognition of his kindness, Francis left Samantha his large mansion and bank balance.
Illustration purposes only. Source: Unsplash| Source: Unsplash
What can we take away from this story?
- There is no act of kindness that goes unrewarded, regardless of how small or large. After Francis brought up the matter of her lost purse at the park, Samantha gave Francis one week’s worth groceries. Francis left his estate to Samantha after he was moved by her compassion.
- Everyone deserves love and kindness. Francis and Samantha were two very different people who showed kindness can only be cultivated. They each received a reward for their kindness and loyalty. Francis’ estate was passed to Samantha. Francis, however, found peace after choosing a worthy heir.
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A waitress offers free food and shelter to a hungry dog-walker and a beggar. He leaves a note, then disappears. She surprises her weeks later with an expensive suit. Click here to see the complete story.
This piece was inspired by stories from our readers’ daily lives and is written by a professional author. Any resemblance to real names or actual locations is only coincidental. Images are used only for illustration. We would love to hear your story.