Pay it Forward

On my 4+ hour drive home from Grand Forks this weekend I was writing my next blog in my head. I think that I have finally been able to find words to depict so much of what I want to write about regarding motherhood again after special needs has entered your world.

But then something else happened.

It was an ordinary stop at McDonald's in Jamestown. Cooper was sleeping and I had lunch in the late morning with my folks - so I was hungry. I pulled into the drivethrough - which in that town has two lanes. It was a very slow process. The van in front of me had a bumper sticker that I pondered for a few minutes.

Mary Kay
enriching women's lives

"Really?" I thought to myself. "How does that work? Does makeup and pedicure kits and the like really enrich a person's life? Or maybe by selling it you add to the bacon you bring home, so that enriches your life? Or..."

A whole bunch of different scenarios were running through my mind along this train of thought.
Yes, this actually is how my brain works.
I am very literal when it comes to words, people.

I had my $6.36 ready to go to pay for my meal. I pulled up and the young man at the window said, "Oh, no. The car ahead of you paid for you."
"What?" I asked.

"Yeah. I don't know why, but they paid for you already."

"Really? Um...okay...I guess. Uh, okay." And with that I drew my hand back into my window and pulled forward slowly.

What do I do? Do I know these people? I think that's a lady driving with dark hair and sunglasses. She peeked at me through her side mirror as I was trying to pay. I should get out and go thank her. Will she be freaked out that I'm leaving my car in a drive-through? Ah, where are my shoes? Okay, shoes are on...oh, crap...I have to pull forward. Ok, wait lady just hang out there I'm going to run up there. Oh, no! You're taking off. I have to move forward more. Which way is she going? What is that license plate number? K, got the number...pulling forward...

I try to hand the girl in the second window my money.
She smiles at me, wondering what my deal is.

"Oh, no. Sorry." I bring my arm back into the car and take my bag and drink from her. I look ahead and the van has vanished. I don't know which way she even turned.

I pull into the next parking lot and just think.

What was I supposed to do? That was a total random act of kindness...a pay-it-forward moment. How cool. But I blew it. I bet she wanted me to pay for the person behind me?

Instead, I did nothing. I was totally dumbfounded. I was in shock.

So, I called my husband about figuring out who this person was to thank her, which is probably the last thing she wants.
I contemplated for at least the next half an hour about how I was going to do a random act of kindness to a total stranger, which I found out today is trickier than you would think.

And I thought about how, in the middle of such complete nastiness in the world such as war, disease, suffering and more, that there is also so much good.

This simple act really affected me. And I too will pass it on in some random way.

How lucky I was to receive this kindness.