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Life TransformationThe #1 thing that can transform your life...
The Power of Kindness:
As I approached the stop sign near our home in the country, I didn't realize that there was a layer of ice under the snow. You can probably guess the rest of the story. The car slid through the intersection into a small ditch on the other side of the road. I wasn't hurt, but I was angry with myself. A day that was supposed to be "Christmas fun" would be spent waiting for a tow truck to pull me out of the ditch.
Since I was not far from my home, I started walking down our country road to share the "no shopping today" news with my wife. I noticed two men who were building my neighbor's barn and I thought that maybe...just maybe, I could pay them to take a break and try to push me out. As I approached, I introduced myself and pointed to the car in the distance. Without hesitating, they looked at each other and said, "We can solve that problem!" One of them said, "I'll get the chain and George, you can drive the backhoe down the road and we'll have it out in no time!" In the next 30 minutes while I watched helplessly from the sidelines, they had my car out of the ditch and on the road again. To say that I was grateful was an understatement. My Saturday had been saved thanks to two men I'd never met before. I thanked them, reached into my wallet and handed them a $100. I said, "Please take this. It would have cost me more to call a tow truck and I would have spent my afternoon waiting for it to show." They both looked at me, and at the same time said, "No way! We wouldn't consider taking a cent." Then the one man said, "This was our good deed for the day and we know that you'll help someone else because we helped you. That's all we ask." I drove away with a wonderful feeling inside, knowing there are people like this in the world. It made my day! But here's the amazing thing about kindness...from the look on their faces, it made theirs too! Emerson was so right when he said, "One of the most beautiful compensations in life is that no man can help another without helping himself." That day provided the inspiration to write the book I simply call,The Power of Kindness Movie . In doing the research to write the book, I discovered something I had always suspected, but never knew for sure. Here's what I found... The great English writer, Aldous Huxley, was a pioneer in the study of philosophies and techniques to develop human potential. In a lecture toward the end of his life, he said this: "People often ask me...what is the most effective technique for transforming their lives?" He then said, "It's a little embarrassing that after years and years of research, my best answer is - just be a little kinder." This is the paradox of the power of kindness. It doesn't feel powerful at all. In fact, it almost feels too simple to be important. But as Huxley said, it is the #1 thing that can transform your life. I've been so blessed to share what I believe through many of the Simple Truths' books. However, there is nothing, in my opinion, that can top the awesome "power of kindness." Why? Because, everyday, through unexpected acts of kindness, you can make a meaningful difference with your life! Today, I wanted to share one of the many stories from the book. It's called Paid in Full:
An excerpt from The Power of Kindness Movie by Mac Anderson One day, a poor boy who was selling goods from door-to-door to pay his way through school, found he had only one thin dime left, and he was hungry. He decided he would ask for a meal at the next house. However, he lost his nerve when a lovely young woman opened the door. Instead of a meal, he asked for a drink of water. She thought he looked hungry and so she brought him a large glass of milk. He drank it slowly, and then asked, "How much do I owe you?" "You don't owe me anything," she replied. "Mother has taught us never to accept pay for a kindness." He said, "Then I thank you from my heart." As Howard Kelly left that house, he not only felt stronger physically, but his faith in God and man was strengthened also. He had been ready to give up and quit. Years later, that young woman became critically ill. The local doctors were baffled. They finally sent her to the big city, where they called in specialists to study her rare disease. Dr. Howard Kelly was called in for the consultation. When he heard the name of the town she came from, he went down the hall of the hospital to her room. Dressed in his doctor's gown, he went in to see her. He recognized her at once. He went back to the consultation room determined to do his best to save her life. From that day, he gave special attention to the case. After a long struggle, the battle was won. Dr. Kelly requested from the business office to pass the final billing to him for approval. He looked at it, then wrote something on the edge, and the bill was sent to her room. She feared to open it, for she was sure it would take the rest of her life to pay for it all. Finally, she looked, and something caught her attention on the side of the bill. She read these words: "Paid in full with one glass of milk..." (Signed) Dr. Howard Kelly (Dr. Howard Kelly was a distinguished physician who, in 1895, founded the Johns Hopkins Division of Gynecologic Oncology at Johns Hopkins University. According to Dr. Kelly's biographer, Audrey Davis, the doctor was on a walking trip through Northern Pennsylvania one spring day when he stopped by a farm house for a drink of water.)
The Golden Rule, Power of Kindess, pay it forward !
Copyright 2008-2012 Teambuilding-Leader.com
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