Share a kind act someone did for you

heidi

Sun, Jul 26 2020, 1:58 pm

Our family returned from a vacation to America to our home in Israel on a Friday morning.
I totally planned to make a simple shabbat, but hadn't counted on the baby not sleeping for the entire trip and my being utterly exhausted.
Our taxi driver, a complete stranger, frum, who lived in a nearby neighborhood, was very worried about how we'd manage to make shabbat.
The whole drive home from the airport he kept asking what our plans were, if we had stuff in the freezer, etc. We assured him we'd be fine.
2 hours after dropping us off at home our taxi driver rang the doorbell. In he walked with fresh salatim, meatballs, and a chocolate cake.
Only in Israel!!!!

Amelia Bedelia

Sun, Jul 26 2020, 3:59 pm

heidi wrote:

Wow!! Mi K'amcha Yisroel!

amother

Orange

Sun, Jul 26 2020, 4:34 pm

The principal of my daughter’s school called me saying that my daughter seems extremely anxious and sad and asked me where that is coming from.

I broke down crying and admitted that our family had very bad shalom bais issues.

I felt so embarrassed because I barely knew the principal and was very intimidated by her and I wanted so much for her to think highly of my family.

When I took a breath I heard something strange on the other end of the phone.

After a few seconds I realized that the principal was crying along with me!

It was the first time in so long that I truly felt that somebody cared.

She proceeded to assure me that she would do whatever she could to help, and she went above and beyond, making endless phone calls to arrange free counseling for me, discretely giving me money to buy clothing for my kids, and giving me constant encouragement and kind words.

Baruch Hashem, the counseling gave me incredibly helpful skills to help improve our family situation and my daughter is much better now.

It was a few years ago but I still think of the sound of that principal crying and how much she really cared, and it meant the world to me.

That moment was a turning point in my life.

amother

Pink

Sun, Jul 26 2020, 4:54 pm

amother [ Orange ] wrote:

This story made me have tears in my eyes wow what an amazing principal!

amother

Lawngreen

Sun, Jul 26 2020, 5:09 pm

Several years ago, my assistant at work seemed to be in a prolonged funk. Her father had died a few months before and I thought she was still dealing with emotional issues with that (the two were not close). She was a very private person in general but something was different and she didn't talk much about it. She was a single mom and didn't have any family in the area. Her son, whom I had only met once before, a few years prior, was a good kid. Smart and polite. About 9 yrs old.

One day she finally shared that a month before, after getting in an argument with her son's teacher on the phone about him being bullied, the teacher called up child protective services and told them some unfavorable story about the child and CPS took the child out of school and put him in protective custody and foster care. (I believe my assistant was at a disadvantage and at mercy to the "system" because she was single and african american and just barely scraping by with her paycheck and it was easy for people to believe not so nice things about her. She had no family or support.) My assistant was not permitted to talk to him nor see him and the child was traumatized by the whole thing. He was hospitalized for depression because he was running away from foster care and even though the hospital would call the mom to ask permission to treat him, she still couldn't see him or talk to him. Eventually she was allowed to talk to him via phone with social worker present and eventually they were allowed to meet if he initiated the meeting. That never happened though.

Meanwhile she obtained lawyers and there were court dates and changed court dates and changed judges. It was heartbreaking to see. Months went by. Eventually the child was placed in a group home for foster kids that needed therapy/school/structure. My assistant was hardly ever able to talk to or know how her child was doing.

Because I was a "friend", I was allowed somehow to visit the child on a few occasions at the group home. I spent a few hours each time with him. He remembered me from the one time we had met and he knew I worked with his mom. I brought him presents and snacks and I could tell that he was relieved to see a person that was familiar to him and also who knew he and his mom. I remember one of the days I visited was a fast day. I think it was Tisha B'Av (because I take the day off for that day). It took another 2 months for the court cases to be completed and my assistant finally got her child back. She then moved out of the city and state...far away. She was a good assistant.

Turns out that CPS had no legal authority to do what they did. The teacher had moved out of the state. The story about the child from the teacher was made up. The whole thing was on the news.

But, I think I gave the child and his mom some piece of mind during the whole terrible ordeal.

I couldn't imagine going through something like that.