I Am The Milkman Of Human Kindness

I will leave an extra pint.*

I know that sounds like a bit of a weird post today but trust me, it is very apt because on Saturday I was shown the milk of human kindness in the most unexpected fashion.

Somebody bought some milk.

Let me tell you how.

I had popped into the Co-Operative (a grocery store here in the U.K) for a tin of coffee as there was none in the house and as a friend was decorating my office (we have to keep the decorator happy don’t we…!) I felt it was the least I could do. So I went into the shop with the simple task of buying just coffee. In my pocket I had a £10 note.

Plenty.

But as I walked around the shop I thought, I’ll buy some tea bags as I am running low (Yorkshire Gold – the only brand for me) and I will get some milk as I don’t want the decorator to run out of milk for his coffee…. Then I walked by the sandwich selection fridge and ordinarily I would have passed this by but having seen a sandwich I had not had in many years (a Pastrami, Mustard and Pickle) I thought I would treat myself, along with a can of diet soda.

So I duly arrived at the checkout only to remember that I had only brought the £10 in with me and my wallet was at home because I had come from walking the dog (I always carry an emergency £10 when walking the dog!) and thats when I realised it would probably not be enough.
Well I was correct, so I asked the assistant to put something back and quickly calculated that the milk could be the thing to be returned plus as I stood there I recalled I actually did have over a pint left and could pick some more up later should I need to.

We had just agreed this when a young girl who was behind me in the queue insisted that she gave me the £1.02 I was short on the bill. This completely took me aback and as much as I tried to say no and tell her I didn’t really need the milk, the more she insisted that I did and that she would pay the shortfall. This absolutely blew me away to be honest. I was not expecting it. I have never before come across such kindness from a stranger but I know one thing for certain, I shall pay it forward myself and try not to see anyone short again as long as I am in a position to help.

I suppose what I am getting at is the fact that life can be so much better than it sometimes is. Yes I could quite happily have managed without that milk and gone back out again later and bought some but the fact is the girl had no idea of my financial situation and whether that was my last £10 note or one of many I had sitting in my wallet even if it was sitting at home. No, she just acted on what she was presented with and she acted with kindness.
This I believe strongly is something that the world could learn from. Giving another person a helping hand just because you can. Being nice to someone, just because you can, smiling at someone, just because you can.

All of these things may seem petty and pointless but they can mean the absolute world to another person who may be carrying the weight of that same world on their shoulders. So if the slightest gesture can make all the difference, the merest glance or acknowledgment can see another person through a tough time then just imagine what it could be like if we all stopped to think for a minute and decided to help one another or at the very least not hate one another. Not dislike someone for how they look, what colour they are, what sexual orientation they lean toward and last but not least what size they are.

Now if we can do any of the above, give other people the benefit of the doubt, help other people when they are in need or simply just smile at them, then as Sam cooke said “What a wonderful world this would be”

FOOD DIARY:Tuesday 13th October 2015

Qty Measure Food Calories (gr) Protein (gr) Carbs (gr) Fat (gr)
Breakfast  2  75gms Toasted Rye Bread with Cashew Butter  416  12.48  73.7  13.2
Lunch
 1 Small Bowl  Homemade Cottage Pie  306  36  21  17
Dinner  1 50gms  Wholegrain Rice  70  1.5  12.25  1.5
 1 Small Bowl Homemade Chicken Curry  175  19  13  7
 1/2 Naan  Plain Naan  95  13  24  9
Snacks  2  400mls  Tea  11.8  0  0.8  0
 2  400mls  Latte  210  12  18  8
 2  Mini Muffins Egg, Cottage Cheese and Ham Mini Muffins  260  36  8  8
Totals  1543.8  129.98  170.75  63.7
Water  2  500mls  Mineral Water  0  0  0  0

So the food for Tuesday was pretty good to be honest apart from the amount of carbs consumed. Once again I was caught out by the fact that I had eaten toast in the morning and Naan in the evening, boosting my figures to a level much higher than normal. I suppose I had planned to walk and exercise much more than I did so thought that it would not matter but unfortunately this was not the case and I was quite sedentary for the day apart from a short walk with the dog.
Still, no matter really, I am still finding my feet after the long lay off from the exercise regime I set myself but am sure things will start to take a turn and head back to the norm very soon.

As for my exercise, I managed a decent walk with the dog but never managed a trip to the gym. For some reason I feel like I have lost my interest in going there which is odd because I absolutely love it. I can only assume it is the changing of the weather or the fact I have lost a little of my pep that was carrying me along for the past 6 months. I know I say quite often that Rome wasn’t built in a day and I mean it, but I wish just once I could get my motivation back and have it stick instead of being the nearly happened or the also ran that my gym regime currently appears to be.

Fortunately the dog walk was a pretty good one covering 3.6 miles as shown in the screenshot from the Map My Walk app.

IMG_2301

And the Jawbone Up2 reading of over 13,000 steps was good to see which meant that even though I did not make it to the gym, I step didn’t spend the day with my backside on the sofa. Mind you as good as the walking looks, I am not sure where It managed to get a sleep total of nearly 12 hours from. That just plain did not happen… Weird!

IMG_2300

‘Till tomorrow,

Stay out of the fridge.

*Billy Bragg – The Milkman Of Human Kindness

33 thoughts on “I Am The Milkman Of Human Kindness”

  1. Julie says:
    Reply

    Its Yorkshire Gold all the way for me too .. doesn’t it make your day when you experience kindness. My Grandma, the one with all the sayings, use to say that her mantra was ‘always do the right thing and do it with kindness’ . Not only did she show that kindness in everything she did but she would have done a great job in being a world diplomat, no matter how difficult someone was or a situation was she sorted it through being kind..and it works.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Worlds Biggest Fridge Magnet says:
      Reply

      A nice cup of Yorkshire Gold sets a man up for the day!!
      I really was blown away Julie, completely and I totally agree with your Grandmother, life is too short without an attitude like this.
      Your Grandmother sounds like she was awesome, maybe she could have banged these bloody Politicians heads together, knock some sense into them!

      Liked by 1 person

  2. Osyth says:
    Reply

    It’s the thought, isn’t it. The gesture. And it is something we all SHOULD do – help where we can, just do it, don’t hold back. But the fact is that mostly we good and this little vignette is a wonderful reminder of how it can be if we allow it to be. I hope the Sandwich and soda were worth it 😉

    Liked by 1 person

  5. sleeveforme22 says:
    Reply

    What a wonderful thing to happen!! As a family, we like to pay for someone’s dinner at a restaurant or pay for the car behind us at Starbucks, etc. and we do that at least 6-7 times a year. We typically do it anonymously but I’m sure the joy it brings to them pales in comparison to the joy it brings us! Pay it forward!

    Liked by 1 person

  6. Lisa says:
    Reply

    At the core, people are genuinely nice and they want to be kind. Most of them do anyway I believe. And when someone is kind to you, it is natural to want to pay that kindness forward. We should all be that way everyday. The World would be such a better place if we would just be kind to one another. Fabulous story!

    Liked by 1 person

  7. chattykerry says:
    Reply

    That’s a lovely gesture. It is really common to pay it forward here in TX. Some of our volunteers at the airport even carry small notes and change to help out stranded passengers. I notice that the shop and restaurants will sneak a free coffee or phone card.

    Liked by 1 person

  8. New Journey says:
    Reply

    Love your post…and isn’t it nice to know that there are still some wonderful human beings out there…for many years I have enjoyed playing it forward, I don’t tithe at a Church or give to a charity on a regular basis, so when I am in line at Starbucks, I would often pay for the person behind me, it gave me a warm fuzzy feeling inside….my husband and I always find out from our kids a family that has kids and are struggling, so Easter and the holidays we get gift cards to grocery stores and Walmart and mail them to them in a card from someone who just wants to help, we never put our name and our kids never tell, but they get to witness the joy it brings and always report back…good feelings for sure…it was nice to be able to help out a family from the Valley Fire, my daughters neighbor is a Social Worker and one of her families she is assigned to lost everything…and they were grandparents….struggling before…so it gave me time to go through my closet and clean out clothes, and we had luggage we never used so we filled 3 suitcases and several bags and went out and bought some personal items and gave them to the case worker….wish I had more money…I certainly would spread the joy more….hey I didn’t want to go to they gym yesterday…I just put on my work out clothes and went and did 40 minutes and gave it all I could….and I am going back today…the hardest part is getting there…go back..you will be happy you did….it is a high in its own to know your working out your muscles…in and out, wham bang thank you maam….LOL

    Liked by 1 person

    • Worlds Biggest Fridge Magnet says:
      Reply

      Wow Kat, that is super kind of you to do that. In the past all I had ever done was volunteer for the Salvation Army christmas dinner taxi services, or soup kitchens but now I know there is another way to spread the joy. I know I don’t have a great deal of spare cash at present (being a struggling writer and all) but I always try to help people out by giving them something they may need if I have it.
      It sets us apart, not in a pious way, just in a clear conscious way.
      As for the gym I am trying but have noticed yesterday evening and today I have been light headed and a little weak and then today I also find out this is some of the symptoms for the virus that is going about so maybe I have caught it and am suffering a touch more. Hopefully cleared up soon though!
      Well done you getting there though, sounds like it was a chore but you did it…!

      Like

  9. New Journey says:
    Reply

    in the beginning after I had already cleansed my body of all the nasty sugars and had a terrible urge for a candy bar…I picked it up and fondled it like it was a drug…checked out headed out to the car, stopped in front of the car and pulled out the award I was giving my self for doing so well…peeled back the wrapper, actually smelled the thing…took a bite started to chew….OMG it was like eating a slice of pure lard…LOL I spit it out in the trash and threw the rest away…never to have eaten a cheap piece of chocolate again..at the kite festival there was a specialty shop selling Seattle chocolates….they are the real deal…I bought us each 4 pieces …..they were wonderful….LOL had to share as this memory is imagrained in my mind

    Liked by 1 person

  11. Pingback: There’s Nowt As Strange As Folk… | The worlds biggest fridge magnet

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