Penguin Books Australia

An unexpected kindness 1

There's something quite magical about moments of kindness that come out of the blue. They dissolve our isolation and quiet despair, and help us feel hopeful again. I'm always moved by the generosity of strangers, especially when I'm a long way from home. Sometimes all it takes is one tiny gesture to change my whole impression of a place. Have you noticed how kindness stays with you, and how when you recall it months later, it continues to reassure and delight?

When we are kind, something inside shifts. We feel lighter, happier, more at peace. Often we will have no idea how much a small gesture has meant, and that, I suspect, is how it's meant to be. What I have learned is that when we are kind, we help create miracles, as Bill discovered on his way home from work. He was driving along a stretch of road between two lagoons, when suddenly a brown duck and its tiny chicks appeared in front of his car, forcing him to swerve. The ducks escaped unharmed, but Bill's car was a wreck. Even though this was a major inconvenience, Bill didn't regret saving the ducks.

A few months later the doctor found a cancerous mole on Bill's back. It was removed and, for a couple of years, Bill was fine. Eventually, however, the cancer returned, until Bill only had weeks to live. One morning, as he lay in bed, Bill heard a noise outside his window. There on the lawn were four brown ducks. Bill had no idea whether they were 'his' ducks, but from that day the ducks visited regularly.

When we are kind, something inside shifts. We feel lighter, happier, more at peace.

As Bill grew worse, his family moved his bed into the living room. The ducks continued to visit, but now they came to the front door, so Bill could still see them. This small clutch of ducks was there the day Bill died. On the way home from his funeral, Bill's wife and family caught sight of ducks overhead. They next returned on the anniversary of Bill's death.

Now, whenever Bill's family sees ducks they are greatly comforted, as are we to learn of their kindness, because we all ache to be loved, to belong, and for life to support us when we need it. The beautiful thing is that when we practise random acts of kindness, we help bring about these precious qualities.