Kindness Was the Only Thing Still Standing, part five

1. I was raised by a single mother, and we were always a little worse for wear. Just putting food on the table was difficult for my mom. Every summer, though, my sister and I would get to go on a trip with this church group, completely paid for by an "anonymous benefactor." We went to the beach, we went to water parks, we ate like pigs, and we had the time of our lives. Mom couldn't afford to take me and my sister out on vacations, so these were some of the happiest memories from our childhood. Years later, I found out who was paying for these trips. It was this elderly man whom I had grown to consider my mentor. Even though he has 60 years on me, we can sit and talk for hours. Learning that he was the one who paid for some of my happiest memories nearly made me cry. Have you ever had an older mentor who helped you?

2. Once I had a knock on our door at 11:30 at night. Young woman in tears outside asking to use our phone. I give her my cell and wait with her. She is calling her mother because she was "wrong," and from what I can tell, she got engaged against her family's wishes, moved in with her fiancé, and after a short time, they had a huge scandal. She leaves immediately. He has the car, the house, and all her stuff, including her money and phone. She wanders the street and sees our lights on and asks for help. Anyways, the mother refused to come get her. So, my wife and I asked her if there was anywhere else she could go. She has friends down the way. So, we drive her down to them. She says we can go, but we stay to make sure she gets in. The friends don't answer, they must be asleep. So, we open the window and tell her to get back in. We ask her if there is anywhere else she can go. She says no, she will just have to go back to her fiancé's house. We ask if she feels safe doing that, and she won't look us in the eyes. So, we drive her to a motel 8 (nothing fancy, we aren't well off, but it's a bed). And give her $40 for food. She is very grateful and would have cried, but we could tell her tear ducts were dry already. We called the motel the next morning, and her aunt picked her up. Haven't heard from her, but I hope she's doing well. Do you like these stories about sometimes life changing acts of kindness?