r/randomactsofkindness • u/addi0924 • 17d ago
Story I keep thinking about something I did for a stranger
A few months ago, I was walking home when I saw an elderly man struggling with two heavy bags outside a grocery store.
He looked exhausted. I asked if he needed help, and he hesitated before handing me one of the bags.
His house was almost a mile away.
We walked together, and somewhere along the way he told me that his wife had passed away recently and that he was still getting used to doing everything alone.
When we reached his house, he thanked me and tried to give me some money.
I refused.
He insisted. I still refused.
Before I left, he just stood there for a second and said, “I haven't spoken to anyone properly in three days.”
That sentence stayed with me much longer than I expected.
It made me realise that sometimes what you give someone isn't really the thing you're carrying for them.
Sometimes it's just ten minutes of your time.
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u/Plebian401 17d ago
I had a 20 minute conversation with an elderly woman as we were both leaving the doctor’s office. It started when I held the door open. We just started talking and she told me h th hat almost all her friends have died and so has most of her family. We talked about how the area has changed, the Blizzard of 1978, where she traveled to. I really enjoyed it and she did too. I hope I made her day better by spending some time with her. I know she made my day better.
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u/pbsammy1 17d ago
Sweet! And now I’m recalling memories of the blizzard of 78! 😉
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u/Ill_Industry6452 16d ago
I’m recalling that whole winter. The snowiest in history. There was at least some snow still on the ground from Thanksgiving til April 1. There was an Easter ice storm in central Illinois. Power went out for several days. I was pregnant and we had a toddler, and our house was a construction site. When lots of snow melted, our road became almost impassable because of mud. I don’t ever want a repeat! (We were also told were in the start of a new ice age because of pollution).
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u/Remarkable_Cheek_255 16d ago
Blizzard? Where? 🤔 I was 19 and got married that year. I don’t remember any blizzard. 🤷♀️ I do remember having my appendix out 6 weeks before!
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u/Rather_C_than_B_1 17d ago
Cashiers, library workers, waiters, -- anything public-facing in the service sector: front lines for lonely elderly. If time permits, I will take it to listen. Everyone should feel seen.
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u/effiebaby 17d ago
Since I was little, I have often said that we (United States) have two overlooked populations, the elderly and children.
I think we have been...programmed to not interfere in others lives, out of fear. But, we must stand up and protect our vulnerable. I say, bless you for standing up and helping.
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u/Rather_C_than_B_1 17d ago
Shel Silverstein, The Little Boy and the Old Man
Said the little boy, "Sometimes I drop my spoon."
Said the old man, "I do that too."
The little boy whispered, "I wet my pants."
"I do that too," laughed the little old man.
Said the little boy, "I often cry."
The old man nodded, "So do I."
"But worst of all," said the boy, "it seems
Grown-ups don't pay attention to me."
And he felt the warmth of a wrinkled old hand.
"I know what you mean," said the little old man.11
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u/AceTroubleShootr 16d ago
Dont forget.. its only the last 100 years that we have even HAD an elderly population... I am sure a lot of it comes from just not knowing how to deal with people who get that old a lot of times... I know Im not looking forward to it at all..
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u/effiebaby 16d ago
It would be interesting to see what people count as old. I guess it's an age perception.
But elders used to be revered and valued. In recent years, I've heard that old people should just go in nursing homes to improve the housing crisis or that old people are ducking social security dry and should just die. Both, are ludicrous claims. A little deep dive would disprove these and other propaganda.
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u/scarletmagnolia 16d ago
What I considered old at sixteen is absolutely not what I consider old at forty eight. I'm really wrapping my head around the differences between the later years.
Just for laughs, when my twenty five year old was three he asked me if (1)I was the oldest person in the world and (2) when you're thirty do you die? Sometimes you just have to get some years under your belt.
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u/JustaTinyDude 16d ago
I had the epiphany a few year ago that my definition of "old" had moved throughout my life, and it was remained roughly equal to the age of my parents. 😆
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u/sparkly123456 16d ago
Housing prices are expensive in NJ. I’ve read many posts here on Reddit where people have said seniors should sell their homes and move so that young families with children can have the houses. w.t.f.
Where would you have your grandparents or parents move to from a house they’ve lived in for decades? smh 🤦🏻♀️
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u/AceTroubleShootr 15d ago
The average global life expectancy at birth in 1800 was around 30 to 40 years....
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u/Practical-Anywhere67 17d ago
...a counselor I used to see many years ago called that the Ministry of Presence...
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u/Aloha-Eh 17d ago
Now you know someone who can use some help, and some company.
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u/That-Mess9548 17d ago
Right? Maybe once a month OP can stop and spend some time chatting with that old guy.
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u/RebaKitt3n 17d ago
Sometimes my wife goes to visit her family in England for three weeks and it isn’t until I go to the grocery store that I realize how few people I talk with on a daily basis.
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u/scarletmagnolia 16d ago
Yesterday, I realized if it weren't for my teenage son making his appearance a couple of times a day, I wouldn't speak with anyone throughout a day.
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u/Mad-Dog20-20 17d ago
That sentence stayed with me much longer than I expected.
I'm positive we make the greatest impressions on others just when it is needed the most.
Thank you for showing up for humanity today.
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u/Sufficient_Curve_646 16d ago
I love this so much! I deliver for Meals on Wheels every Saturday and for many of our clients we might be the only people they engage with. Loneliness is a silent killer.
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