Thread: Real Life Vignettes to Share

Aloha!

Cool idea for a thread.

About 15 years ago I was at an Ice Cream stand in a rural country town in the Midwest as I was passing through on business. Hot day in July, and a very young man (8-10 years old?) was in front of me and ordered a small dipped ice cream cone. I noticed him because he counted out pennies and nickles and just made it for the purchase. The little guy probably scrimped and saved for a while to buy that ice cream cone. I got my usual hot fudge sundae and turned around just in time to see the little guy trying to cross the road with his bicycle while holding the cone. Just then a pack of motorcycles came around the corner scaring him, causing him to jump back onto the sidewalk and the cone fell and smashed on the street. The lttle guy is standing there with tears in his eyes and starting to cry. The shaking kind of crying as he was trying to hold back the tears. To him, I am sure it was devistating. This broke my heart. No one else saw this, or no one else cared. Not sure which, but something in me just snapped and I ran outside like it was my own child (even thought I have never had children).

I helped him pick up his bike and the cone, I told him I had seen what happened and I told him to cheer up as things were going to get better quickly. I asked him if he wanted to get a banana split with three dips of ice cream with all the toppings and he just wiped the tears away said he didn't have any money. I said something like, "Let's go inside and make this right." I ordered him a large Banana Split with three scoops and all the toppings. I handed it to him, told him to eat it at one of the picnic tables outside so he wouldn't spill it on the way home, and told him I'd join him for some company. He just looked at me like I was Santa Clause and said "Thank You".

I went outside and ate my ice cream next to him and told him that in life, you have to take bad breaks as they come because just around the corner could be a wonderful thing just waiting for you, so you never give up because there is always hope for something good to happen. He smiled at me and said thank you again and gave me a huge smile that absolutely melted my heart. Truly. It was a life-altering smile.

I like to think I taught the young man a good lesson and that it will be passed on some day. Of all the things I have done in my life, I am most proud of this one. I'll never forget it. Yes, it was a simple thing, but sometimes the simple things are the most beautiful. The image of the little guy crying on the sidewalk when his cone hit the ground and no money to buy another one - VS - The same little guy with a big smile on his face eating a huge banana split 15 minutes later is burned into my memory forever.

-Zip