Pay It Forward

We have a tradition in our home of the kids exchanging Christmas presents with each other on Christmas eve. It is a lot of gifts to get and give...7! Most of the kids are chronically low in funds so saving money for this consists of saving their birthday money, even though the gifts are bought at either the Dollar Store or Five Below. My college age daughter and 12 year old son were standing in the long winding check out line lamenting the need for just a little more money that would have made the perfect gift possible. The line was long so they got to talk about different combinations of exchanging the gifts that would allow them to get this other gift. They were brainstorming and decided the possibility of another kid going in on this gift, but that meant having to come back in a hour and wait in this line again, and it wasn't a sure bet because what if everyone already had their gifts? The woman in front of them must have been listening, because when she checked out she left the $4 for them so they could get their present. They did not know her, or even notice what she looked like, but knew she must have been in the same boat as she was shopping at Five Below too. Such a simple gesture with such huge effects! Those kids got to witness the benefit of an act of kindness. And a lesson for the season, a lesson for life! They got to understand first hand how one small gesture of kindness can make a difference, because that motivated them to be kind to someone else too. And pay it forward.
Merry Christmas!