It was just as if the two things were linked even though they couldn't possibly have been. Was it some kind of good karma? They were both very unremarkable in the grand scheme but, in my quiet world, these two insignificant incidents side by side felt like a brief flash of magic.
It was Monday morning, I had found myself inadvertently chatting with a young homeless man - this is not a very common sight on the streets of my nearest town so it was a bit of an unusual situation for me. But I had ten minutes to wait on a busy pavement and he was sat next to where I stood - with his folded pop-up tent by his side, a can of coke and a gentle, kind-eyed, albeit rather haunted, smile. Anyway, Gareth (as he introduced himself) and I talked awhile. And it was really good. I hope too that it helped him feel... well, fully human: not invisible. I don't mean that condescendingly; I just can't imagine how awful it must be to end up in his predicament. He never asked me for it but I gave him a little gift when I left him - though somehow that didn't seem to be the most important part, what mattered was our prior interaction. Anyway, that was that, we said goodbye and I'll probably never see him again.
Twenty minutes later I was a few miles away, walking into Tesco as a random woman was coming out and, you know what it's like - no-one takes any notice of eachother normally, too preoccupied. We're invisible in a different way! But she looked at me and then stopped especially to say something unexpectedly flattering, a lovely compliment, which she followed up with an even bigger one. Thank you dear lady! This stranger taking the trouble to tell me something so nice and out of the blue made my day, it was such a boost. In fact, small though they are, both that morning's moments have lingered on in my mind since.
I just can't help this feeling that they were, in some intangible way, connected...
Well, we all shine on...
I don't believe in karma, it's too close to religion or a "grand design" that rational me struggles with. That said, I do like the idea of karma when someone unpleasant gets their comeuppance, so maybe I'm a selective believer! Either way, I do like the idea of synchronicity, and your tale of a pleasant act given and another received ticks that box too. Maybe John got it right a few years earlier, and love is all you need?
ReplyDeleteAh - synchronicity! Yes, that's the word for it, thanks. There are so many instances when what we might like to call karma just doesn't exist - bad people get rewarded and vice versa (at least in this life - but that's whole other topic!) and the phrase "no good deed goes unpunished" is more apt instead. That said, there's the irrational part of me which likes to believe in a little bit of magic and mystery that we'll never be able to explain or understand but that just IS (and nothing to do with religion). A magical mystery tour!
DeleteCall it karma, call it paying it forward, what matters are these tiny human interactions. We’re still hardwired (most of us anyway) to be nice. We just don’t show it enough. I hope you experience this again. And again. Imagine a real life chain of good deeds and kind words. Imagine the good we could harness if we all just tried a little bit harder. And if we can do it, imagine what could happen if the billionaires followed our lead. I’m sorry, I got a bit carried away there. We’re all gonna die and those who survive won’t notice cos they’re too busy doomscrolling.
ReplyDeleteNurse, the screens!
JM
Now there's a manifesto I can get behind...
DeleteDid the woman in Tesco call you "young lady"? We know how much you like that. Whatever it was, I'm sure the compliment was entirely deserved.
ReplyDeleteThank you Ernie - ot wasn't that but it was even nicer (and I did start to wonder if she was feeling alright!)
DeleteLovely all round. It really is nice to be nice.
ReplyDeleteI know a song about that:
ReplyDeletehttps://youtu.be/bgVwfeCgZKQ?si=tooKUFcPAJ7OXZKL
And aren't you all wonderful, interesting people, whom I'm very glad to have met, online or otherwise.
ReplyDeleteLate to this post, sounds like your good deed was reciprocated C. My daughter recently said that a total stranger (a woman) paid her a compliment in the supermarket and it made her day. I'm not sure about karma but as everyone else noted and as The Swede said, its nice to be nice.
ReplyDeleteThat's lovely about your daughter's experience and that it made her day too. It's so good how a relatively small thing can give someone a real lift. Really made me think we should all do it more often. People are so often quick to at moan and make ungenerous judgements about strangers but rarely bother to remark about something positive. What a difference it can make!
DeleteCall it whatever you like, it does sound as if the two things were related. We're all dying to know what the compliment was now but you're keeping it close to your chest.
ReplyDeleteI love working in the charity shop as you know and the main reason is that I get to chat to all sorts of people from all walks of life - there is no discrimination in who you converse with and I often get a big surprise. We often get people with very little money in, disabled people with their carers and older ladies who are probably having the only conversation they have all day. This morning we helped an older lady get a nice outfit for her granddaughter's graduation - she was really happy. Who knows - I might have someone pay me a random compliment some day which is always well received!
Yes, it really did feel like the two things were related, there was just something out of the ordinary about it all even though it may not sound like much!
DeleteTalking to people from all different walks of life is a great leveller isn't it - it's so great that you enjoy your charity shop job so much and get those conversations. A lovely thing to do for the lady you mention - the compliments and good deeds should come flowing your way any time now!