The other day I had a headache that wouldn't quit. I'm no stranger to migraines and usually know how to combat them when they pull a sneak attack, but this one was different. It was a tension headache that was fully committed to running its course and no about of Excedrin was going to stop it.
I tried everything I could think of. I focused on my breathing. I massaged my temples and neck. I applied pressure to the pressure points in my hand. I hydrated myself. I took some vitamins. I ate something. I took a walk around the block for some fresh air. I even took a little catnap on a park bench during my lunch break. I took more Excedrin.
Nothing.
On my way back from the park, I saw a gas station and remembered that sometimes caffeine can be a cure-all. I normally don't drink soda, but I needed a Coke, stat. I was desperate.
With the message of a recent commercial I'd seen telling me that plastic bottles sit in a landfill forever lingering in my head, I opted for the classic can. It was 80 cents.
When I got to the check out, I got out my debit card. The cashier looked at it and shook his head. He wasn't about to let me pay for an 80-cent can of soda with plastic. I rifled through my purse and yielded little more than two nickels and, for some reason, a black guitar pick (I don't even play?)
"Never mind," I said as I walked back to the cooler to return the can.
As I headed for the door, the cashier stopped me.
"You pay me next time."
"Excuse me?"
"You take the soda and you pay me back next time."
"Are you serious?"
"It's a hot one out there. You look like you need it."
"I'll pay you back," I promised. "Thank you."
The next day I came back with $5 and told him to keep it. He wouldn't. He insisted he take the 80 cents I owed him and give me my change. Not wanting to insult him, I accepted the $4.20 back. All he said was, "Just come back and say hi every once and a while."
Wow, I thought as I left. It was such a small, simple gesture of kindness that took two minutes but it in turn impacted my outlook for the rest of the day. It sounds cheesy and clichéd, but I felt inspired to pass on the random act of human decency the next chance I get.
I guess I was just ultimately surprised by a total stranger's inclination to do something nice for me when he didn't have to, especially when it concerned money. When not a week goes by that I feel like someone isn't trying to swindle me out of more money -- whether it's our credit card processing company, cell phone service provider or the dude on the street who is now asking for $5 rather than spare change -- it's overwhelmingly refreshing to see that there are still people out there who are willing to show compassion at no gain for themselves.
OnMilwaukee.com staff writer Julie Lawrence grew up in Wauwatosa and has lived her whole life in the Milwaukee area.
As any “word nerd” can attest, you never know when inspiration will strike, so from a very early age Julie has rarely been seen sans pen and little notebook. At the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee it seemed only natural that she major in journalism. When OnMilwaukee.com offered her an avenue to combine her writing and the city she knows and loves in late 2004, she knew it was meant to be. Around the office, she answers to a plethora of nicknames, including “Lar,” (short for “Larry,” which is short for “Lawrence”) as well as the mysteriously-sourced “Bill Murray.”
