Today I Rewarded Good Will for the First Time Ever!

S@F for you...

....This is the kind of thing that goes on the cover page of your after-life resume'

....If you have to pay for your sins when you die, this will be like an earned income credit, or maybe God
will let you claim a deduction

reply to post by ussoldier


I like that soldier! Never can tell the circumstances that led her into being a regular fisherman... uh, I mean, fisherperson. Maybe she used to fish with her husband and she had lost him since then. Just speculation, but my point is that there are always backstories to the behavior we see in people.

It really is great to hear of everyone's experience with things like this, whether you are giving good will or receiving.

At some point I really did mean to ask for anyone and everyone who reads this to please share their stories, but I just forgot to ask, thanks for the request, I 2nd that.

It would also be great to hear of anyone who has been inspired by my plan and the general nature of the act and are considering to attempt their own plan of rewarding the goodwill of others.

I also think it would be incredibly incredible if any of you guys could post what you are planning to do and fill us in throughout your plan of action, from start to finish. We could see it progress in real time, daily, until the final result is acheived.

I loved the way the experience left me feeling and I definitely plan to do this again soon, but I am going to wait a bit, just to be on the safe side.

I mean, I know this couple was very grateful and I just know that they will be telling family and friends. I don't want to do this again too fast and run the risk of having someone they know try and search craigslist for my ad and then take advantage of me.

Not that they would do that, but they probably would and I just want to be on the safe side and avoid risking a situation like that.

I'll think about another way to do something similar and I will post it here befor I put it into action. Then maybe you guys and girls can watch another good will reward unfold.

It would be very cool to see several members performing acts like this and detailing the experience as it progresses.

reply to post by rival


haha, that's awesome and I hope it is true!! I guess it would be kinda like getting a coin to give to the ferryman, but instead of going to hell, I'll go to heaven and claim my 72 virgins.... wait... what? I think I am on the wrong program for that.

I am not claiming to be God or God-like, but if I were, I would definitely reward the acts of good will and fair treatment before rewarding someone who strapped SCUD missile to their back and blasted their body into the 'Waffle House' while screaming 'God is Great!!'

I don't really have a great story like so many of you do. Though I am pretty generous with my stuff. I just sent a pretty expensive bass guitar to a friend of mine out of state because he needed one and I had one I don't need. That's a friend, so I guess it doesn't really count.

I live in Hollywood and was driving home from work one day when my car died on me. I was on Cahuenga right in the middle of Hollywood right next to The SpotlightClub (if you live here, you probably have seen this place). It's kinda seedy, well it's closed down now, but anyway... The car dies and won't start back up. So me being the responsible motorist, I have to get the car off this busy street. I stepped out of the car and looked around. Some kinda scraggly looking dude just nods at me, and I nod back. He walks over and I say, "we'll put it right over there" motioning to a no parking zone on the sidestreet. So we pushed the car off the road and that was it. I said thanks and he went about his business. Seems really simple, but there isn't many people here that would do that. I know that I've done the same thing for other people a few times in the past and it was just the same. Really cool that we didn't have to talk at all, he just helped and was fine with that. We, as humans, take a lot of flack about being bad, but there really are a lot of good ones out there.

Speaking of cars, anyone remember when you used to see a car with their lights on in a parking lot and just go into the strangers car and shut them off for them? Ahh nostalgia...

reply to post by absentee


It always counts!

Even though you may feel that because your experience was not as extensive or profound as some of the experiences shared by others, it is most certainly equally important.

This is because your experience illustrates how the simple act of good will, in the form of a helping hand during car troubles, engrains itself into our memories, no matter the extent of the assistance or the brevity of the encounter.

Thank you for your post and sharing your experiences with us. I am certain that there is someone out there who will read this thread and will be inspired to go a bit out of their way to make someone else feel better about themselves and the world they live in.

Although some of these acts can seem small to those who extend the helping hand, there is no telling how deep and extensive these acts of kindness will reach into the recipients life - in extreme situations it could mean the difference in life or death, most literally.

Example of this can be found in California, at the 'Golden Gate Bridge';

Each year many people travel to the bridge with the sole intent of committing suicide. Many people do achieve their goal, but many decide not to go through with it.

Research was done to try and discover what is pushing so many to this point and why some follow through and others don't.

In interviews with people who intended to jump, but opted out, it was found that the main reason that many of them turned away from the life ending jump was related to interaction with complete stranger, moments before they would have jumped.

The interaction with the strangers was not, for the most part, a lengthy interaction and in many instances there were not even an exchange of words between the suicidal individual and the person who helped them change their mind.

In these instances, those who were suicidal but changed their minds, reported that as they walked to the center of the bridge they past someone in the other direction. As they passed the stranger looked at them and smiled.

It was because the simple act of kindness in a smile was given to the suicidal person that they changed their mind and decided not to end their lives.

So goodwill has profound effects on the recipients no matter the size or description of goodwill displayed.

reply to post by absentee


Of course it counts. Dont minimize your actions because it was a friend, you help out someone in need for no other reason then to help.

Btw, please excuse my grammar and spelling. Its Horrible

Thanks OP for this thread. For a while now ive been looking back and only seeing the bad, thinking I must be cursed for drawing the bad people to me. Since this thread I started to think back and realised the ive been surrounded by good people.

I will tell you another one. I lived about 2 blocks off the beach in Biloxi, Mississippi when Hurricane Katrina hit. My roomate and I decided to stay because we never seen a hurricane ( Dumb idea ). Anyway we were lucky, are neighborhood was sorta elevated so we didnt get the full brunt of the storm surges. We lost the roof and a wall from our neighbors roof hitting the side of our house the our cars were also shot. We walked up to Hwy 90 and couldnt believe our eyes, looked like nuclear bombs hit us. I have pics if you wanna see.

Im getting off track. So we have no running water, no power, no communication, and transportation. We werent prepared the only supplies we bought was beer and we had some MREs we got from our base when we were going to go camping.

The next day we were outside talking with other neighbors that stayed when we seen this big RV coming down the road. When it got closer we noticed it had Canadian tags. They stopped and this little 14yr old girl opened the door and started passing all of us cases of water and food. I cant understand how this family fit in that RV with all those supplies stacked to the roof. We started talking with them, then during the conversation we heard a vehicle coming. I looked down the road and it was another RV from Cananda doing the same thing.

They told us that evey year they and 4 other families get in their Rvs and go on vacation to somewhere in the U.S. but when they heard about the hurricane they knew it would be bad so instead of vacation they would do this. The best part to me was when I said to the young girl im sorry you got dragged down here instead of Disney, the teenage girl and her little sister replied this was the best vacation they ever had. The Father told me it was their 14yr old daughter that came up with the idea of doing this.

They even gave my roomate and I a ride to the base so they didnt think we were AWOL or dead.. Before getting off the RV I said my thanks gave the young girl a big hug, pulled the flag off my ACUs and handed it to her I said this is all i can give you but hopefully this will make you always remember us. Her eyes got watery she looked around then she took off this hemp anklet with shells on it that she got in Florida last year. She handed it to me and said this is to remember us.Wish I would of gotten their names, I would look them up on Fbook right now

Thinking back its kinda funny how 5 families in RVs made it from Cananda to Mississippi 3 days before FEMA could get there

reply to post by esteay812



You are my hero. Thank you. If I think allot about the whole thing I actually tear up.

Thanks man.

reply to post by esteay812


Don't have time to read all the replies as this has probably been posted numerous times already. Thank you for taking your time to help out in this crazy yet beautiful world we live in. I know people like you have become slim and none and slim is slowly packing up his stuff. My thanks goes to anyone who is truly helping out their community, their friends and their family, you may not always get the thanks you deserve, so thank you!

reply to post by esteay812


First thing I thought after I read your story was that those people probably prayed that they would be able to get their floor done cheaply, and you were sort of "God's messenger," feeling for a strange reason compelled to do this little ruse.

I've had incidents like that, where I -- completely unaware -- was "sent" somewhere (i.e., just following an inexplicable hunch to go to a certain place), to be in the right place at exactly the right time to help someone out of a pinch. It's pretty awesome when it happens, and makes you feel great.

It is people like you that helps me maintain my faith in humanity. Yes, I am guilty of losing it quite often, plummeting to the depths of despair. I actually answered an ad similar to yours and helped someone down on their luck. They ended up coming back to my home later and breaking in and stealing thousands of dollars of my stuff, and even though I knew he did it and even went by his house and saw my items in his possession there was no way for me to prove it was mine, so he got away with it.

Since then I have been much more reluctant to helping people like that, as this was probably the third or fourth time I've been scammed by trying to help people locally. I suppose I am naive and believe too much at times in the goodness in each of us.

But seriously, your post really made my day.

reply to post by DJM8507


Im sorry that happend to you. A thief is the lowest form of life. The only time stealing is ok is if your doing it to survive i.e.. taking food, drink, clothing from a store.

There will always be those people that are only there to see what they can get from you. Then when you gave all you can its not good enough so they either disapear until they want something again or take advantage of you and take what you have left.

Its happend to me also, though not as bad as what happend to you. Thats why it is very hard for me to trust anyone. You must be easy going person just to let that go. I couldnt do that, if the police wouldnt do anything I would have taken it into my hands, but thats just me

Can't say what hasn't been said already, i'm a big fan of doing people favours for nothing, even favours as big as this if you have the means.

Shame more people don't think of it.

Starred and flagged, nice one.

CX.

Great story...thanks so much for posting it.

I'm a big believer in "Paying it Forward". Matter of fact, I'll ask that folks do the same. I've given money to folks in parking lots, etc. when they ask for gas money or money for a hotel room and just asked that they pay it forward to people in a similar situation in the future. I also figure if these folks are scamming, they'll have to answer for it rather than me having to answer for not helping out our fellow man.

Couple of other stories - we had a pretty good sized flood here in Nashville in 2010. While I was fortunate to not have any damage, we had a subdivision near us that was devastated. A group of us decided to head over there and hand out food and water to folks that were trying to collect what belongings they could in addition to cleaning up. The looks of appreciation on their faces was well worth it, and I think it was a good example for our kids to see about the results of helping others.

We also have opened our home for the summer to a young mother and her two children who had to move here from another state. This is helping them get on their feet in a new state with a little less stress.

It's well worth taking a little extra time to help out those in need, trust me.

reply to post by ussoldier


That is also an awesome story. I am glad you were able to experience this act, even though the town and residents were still in the earlier days of shock and didn't know how bad things would turn out.

These are the things we should demand our news media provide reports on. Many of us can think of instances where we were directly involved or were witness to great acts of compassion and good will, yet we very very rarely hear about these acts.

In a more perfect world, if we demanded this type of content be delivered through media sources, maybe many of the headline grabbing, sensationilzed reports of murder and death would become less and less common.

It would be great to see all of us making a change and demanding a tranformation of the news media and what is reported on. Wouldn't it be great to see the most evil criminals in the world realize that we no longer care about what they do?

We would take the power from them and in doing so we may push many of them to display outrageously kind behavior in order to grab a headline in the news media, with people constantly trying to find bigger and better ways to help others in an attempt of gaining a position in the spotlight of world news media.

I wish, maybe someday, but for now I think I should come back down from fantasyland before I brainwash myself.

Thanks again for sharing that awesome story Soldier!

reply to post by BIHOTZ


You are welcome and thanks for your post here.

I am very pleased to see so many members moed by my story. I never realized it would have this effect on you all.

I thought it would be good to share the experience and maybe inspire a couple members to do just one small, deliberate action of goodwill and kindness.

Earlier I mentioned that an experience like this should happen to everyone at least 1 time, whether they offer the goodwill to an unsuspecting stranger, or they receive an extended hand.

I truly believe that! I hope that just 1 time there will be no thought of why you can't do it. Whether you are too shy, not sure how to, scared of rejection, or fear that you may make a mistake, ignore those feelings and take a chance, if only 1 time in your life.

If you have really never deliberately tried to go out of your way for a strange, or even a friend or family member, you will be incredibly, but pleasantly, shocked at how you will be left feeling. It is indescribable and if the recipients feel even a fraction of that happiness it is well worht the effort.

reply to post by sylvie


Hi sylvie! Thanks for the post - and you too IronNuts, thanks for the post above Sylvie's!

Most people in the south have calanders with scripture on them, or other similar things around their house.

The people had some stuck to the fridge with a magnet. Sorry for my bad memory but it was something along these lines... Who of you can add a single hour to your life by worrying? What makes you more deserving than the birds in the sky? The birds don't worry, but they don't starve, they are provided for. Seek the kingdom of the Lord and you too will be provided for.

I know that isn't close to being exact, but maybe someone will read this and know which quote I am referencing.

It was wild to see that and I really have a feeling they placed it there for me to see, as if they were being used as an instrument to help me through a tough time. Then again, lots of people around here have things like that all over their homes, so it was not a huge surprise to see.

Funny how things like that work, in coincidence.

reply to post by DJM8507


I am glad you enjoyed the thread and I do hate that you have been taken advantage of. I am sure that reason is exactly why I only received one reply to the advertisement.

Especially with some of the horror stories out there that make your situation seem like a birthday party. Don't get me wrong, I don't mean to donplay your situation, just that there are stories about people replying to ads and being lured out and kidnapped, raped, murdered, etc.

If I do this again I will probably not use the same platform as a starting point, it was just the fastest and easiest way to put the plan into effect.

I am not sure if all things happen for a reason, but a lot of people believe they do. Maybe the experiences that you had to endure were a bit of ife experience to prepare for your something later on in life.

As far as me being the type of person that gives evidence as there still being good in the people of the world... thank you for that.

I can assure you that I am not saint and, like most of us, I have my faults and insecurities.

I think what is seen here as a seperation point between me and the next average person is nothing more than follow through.

All things equal, the only thing that seperates me from ayone else in this light is the fact that I actually went through with the plan and everything worked out good.

Wouldn't it be great if we could all have the confidence in each other that has been expressed in this thread? I know that would be awesome and it would definitely be one of my three wishes... if I could only ever remember where I put that stinkin' Genie Lamp'!

reply to post by ussoldier


Hi Soldier! Once again, I agree with you, this time about the thieves.

It is terrible that anyone has to deal with one of the lowest levels of society, in my opinion anyway. Maybe I look at them with a little harder stare than others, but it is because I have been robbed before too and at the times when I was doing my best to make some sort of life for myself.

These criminals do not realize it, but they are spiraling into a terrible existence. Imagine how much bad karma and shame a career criminal must carry around. It must suck knowing you can't show your face in the places you have lived...

It's all fun and games until your a 45 year old alcoholic and addict who has spent the greater part of adult life behind bars and with no inclination to ever be anything more than what they have ammounted to so far.... absolutely miserable existence...

reply to post by MrBigDog1974


That is awesome and if your help doesn't do tons for the mother what you are now offering might just be what allows the child to be what they want to be, instead of playing with only the hand they are dealt.

Nashville is an awesome plays. Printer's Alley I think it is, if I can remember correctly from that night, haha... I have done several commercial properties there. Fairfield Resort @ OpryMills and also Union Station Hotel.

Union Station is a massive place, they don't have a ton of hardwood there, but plenty of tile work. Did some very elaborate custom inlays for the private suites there.

Also, did a (huhmm) gentleman's club there in Nashville. Unfortunately we had to work during the hours they were closed,

Really though, it was actually a very good project. Did a multi-species (hickory, carribean walnut, ash) main runway, laid on a 45 degree angle. It had a border (leopardwood) laid on a 45 degree, but in the opposite direction.

Then we installed another border made of granite, it was almost identical in color to Cadillac's 'Pearl White'. Finally we installed the last border. It was actually a very chocolate brown suede leather. The first time I ever installed leather, or other fabric, on a floor.

Sorry for the off-topic novel I just wrote, I just like Nashville and haven't been back soon enough.

Amazing. I love reading about peoples acts of charity or kindness. I always told myself that if i was ever to come into a good deal of money or a ridiculously high paying job that i would totally be the type of dude who pays off an entire wal-marts lay-away deals or surprises a homeless facility with new buildings plus jetpacks. For now I'm able to do things in my own way and i can help out people in my own little ways. It's amazing how far a kind compliment can go for someone. It could make a depressed mothers entire day that much measurably better and hey, maybe it could prevent them from killing themselves? Perhaps just by talking about your kind act you made some lurker regain a little bit of faith in god or humanity.

I know it gave me a little bit of faith in god and in people.

Seriously, don't stop being kind. The kindness alone builds a temple for your soul and refuge for the lonely. It's one of the most godly things a non-god can do. Even if you don't believe in a god.