It Could Be You

 When I was little, I would visit my grandmother (my Abuelita as I called her) in Peru every other year or so. Driving out there was a bit nuts so we walked everywhere we could or caught public transportation if we needed to go farther. One of the first trips I was old enough to remember, we were walking down the street and my Abuelita pulled her hand away from my father's arm to go help a blind man cross the street. Now this man had lived in the neighborhood for a very long time and my Abuelita always went out of her way to help him cross the street safely whenever and wherever she saw him. He was always grateful and recognized her voice each time, and these gestures of kindness from my Abuelita were the only interactions they had had over many years. After the first time I saw her help him and came back over to continue on to wherever we were going, she said, “He can't see so we see for him.”

My Abuelita's explanation was tied to her strong Catholic faith; There for the Grace of God Go I.

She grew up very poor in a small home that was made with newspapers and mud/clay walls, and with those newspapers she learned to read. She became a teacher and later on her eyesight started to fail and she was almost blind. She was lucky to have been afforded the opportunity to have surgery to regain her sight. It didn't matter where we went, if she saw a blind person, she always went out her way to help them. She almost ended up blind like them, so she always made sure to give back to those who weren't as fortunate to regain their sight.

My Abuelita grew up a poor, hard life but always made room for kindness and giving. We all have people we've learned from by watching their actions and learning the lessons they give, sometimes family and sometimes friends. We have to learn from the mistakes and journeys of others to make sure we don't make the same mistakes ourselves. We make our own mistakes to teach our own lessons as well as pass on the lessons we've learned from those before us.

You never know when something unfortunate could happen or to whom. An act of kindness can cause an amazing ripple effect that we don't know the ending or the impact it makes.

Remember, it costs you nothing to be kind and is worth so much more.

Be Unshaken in your ability to make someone smile today and every day.