Pay it Forward

Not quite a year ago, I picked Gman up from one of his very first days trying out his new daycare. As I was heading out to the car - flustered, as a new mom typically is...I noticed a $5 bill floating along on the sidewalk. I knew this was NOT my money and would soon blow away into the nearby cornfields, but I had already snapped him into his carseat base and could not go back inside to take the money in. I wrestled with whether or not I should take it, decided it would be picked up by a bird if I didn't, and then felt terrible ALL. THE. WAY. HOME. after I claimed it. I folded it into my wallet and considered myself guilty of Grand Theft Auto for at least 24 hours. That guilt was almost immediately forgotten when I realized my baby needed fed, burped, changed, rocked to sleep, fed, burped, changed, bathed and I also needed to do all of those things for myself. 

Fast forward a couple months...On my way to torture work, in the McD's drive-thru (because every new mom deserves McD's for breakfast, right?), majorly sleep deprived, and missing my baby like crazy. I think it was a Monday morning which made it even WORSE than usual. I noticed the person pulling in behind me was driving an older, used and abused vehicle, and had a scowl on their face that could match mine. That famed $5 bill reappeared in my wallet and I decided to pay it forward. I used the money to buy her breakfast. It wasn't my money to begin with and it filled my heart with so much joy seeing the smile on her face in my rear view mirror. Literally turned my whole week around. Simple things in life.

Since then, I've tried to buy for the person behind me at least 1 of every 3-4 times I'm in the drive-thru (the frequency of my drive-thru visits has been drastically reduced). I also look for other ways to "pay it forward" when it appears that someone is having a bad day. Holding open the door, an innocent smile, returning their cart to the cart corral, etc. Now, I'm no saint - and certainly don't need any recognition. There are others who do WAY more than I ever thought of. BUT - it's important to be reminded sometimes that small gestures make BIG differences.

What can you do to brighten someone's day? What small, unexpected gesture would you appreciate someone doing for you? I can't wait to hear how YOU are making a difference!