“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
Thursday last week, I got an unexpected, firsthand look at kindness in action. My husband, our daughter and I had just left the supermarket. We finished storing our groceries in the trunk of the car, he moved to put away the shopping cart, and I heard a loud thud. I looked around, and there he was, on the ground.
Immediately, a small crowd gathered. Fortunately, a bloodmobile was parked a short distance away. The nurses saw what happened and came to our assistance. We got my husband to a sitting position and one of the nurses checked his pulse, while another one told my daughter to call 911. One young lady brought him a cold bottle of water, someone else brought a mat for him to lie on, while an elderly gentleman held an umbrella over him to shade him from the sun. Everyone was so kind and helpful it brought tears to my eyes.
In this time of a pandemic, no one thought of social distancing. All they knew was that a fellow human being needed assistance and they offered it willingly. Everyday, bad news filters down to us through the television, the radio, and the internet. There is so much emphasis on all the wrongs taking place in our society we don’t realize that somewhere, in some little corner of the globe, people are rushing to the aid of someone they don’t even know. My husband is in the hospital now with a broken hip, and he has nothing but praise for the doctors and nurses who are looking after him.
Now, when I hear reports of hospital workers who are going over and beyond the call of duty to take care of the sick, some of them not even having the protection they need to look after coronavirus patients, I get choked up with emotion. I send up a prayer for them, and I thank God that there are still so many good, kind-hearted people in the world. I can almost hear Jesus saying, as He said in Matthew 25: 40: “‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’”
Please take care of yourselves. But remember, if something does happen to you, there are lots of good people, ready to demonstrate what kindness in action really means. Until next time, be blessed.
