Pre-Spring Cleaning and Random Acts of Kindness

This weekend, for various reasons, I did a mega round of pre-spring cleaning.  I fit as many unnecessary items as possible into five big bags, carried them down my five flights of stairs, loaded my car, and drove down to Housing Works for a donation.  Parting with one's possessions brings mixed emotions.  Items carry memories, whether good or bad, and letting go can be difficult.  Yet, once done, I feel relieved, less tied to the material realm.  And I count myself lucky to be able to start a new phase.

It was after dark on Saturday and Columbus Avenue was empty.  Winter this year had been so mild that it left me wondering when Nature would have her vengeance.  Saturday night she seemed to be reading my thoughts.  The air had turned cold and few people were on the streets.  I double parked my car and hustled to place the bags in front of Housing Works' closed doors.  I was exhausted, not noticing those around me.  As I stooped over my work, a woman walked past and said, "Thank you for donating.  It's kind of you."  Before I knew what to say, she had disappeared. 

I hurried back to my car for the last load.  In the back seat I noticed an old blanket that I never use.  I had not thought to donate it, but then I figured, might as well.  I placed it atop the five big bags.  As I turned wearily back to the car, a woman in a motorized wheelchair stopped to eye my donation.  She took the blanket, held it up for inspection.  You're giving this away, she asked.  Yes, I said, you can have it. She looked at it longingly, placed it over her knees, and said, Thank you. I'm always looking for things to keep my knees warm, and this is just the right size.  It's yours, I replied, Enjoy.  I wish I could have thought of more to say, but I was too tired.  Back at my car, I looked again at the woman.  She was smiling, smoothing the blanket over her knees, fondling it's texture.

Sometimes this city can make you feel alone and unwanted.  People can seem hard and angry at their fellow human beings.  Once in my neighborhood, while I was walking down the street, a pile of poop fell from the sky and landed two feet in front of me.  Someone had thrown it out the window, unconcerned about (or trying to hit?) those beneath.  Had I been more impatient, walking more quickly, I would have been splattered with the stuff. 

Random acts of kindness are not always returned, or even noticed in this world.  But when you can make at least one other human being fleetingly happy (an old woman in a wheelchair with cold knees), it's one way to forget the shit that falls from the sky.