Strangers’ Small Acts That Changed Lives Forever: Stories That Will Restore Your Faith in Humanity
Maybe my rock bottom moment?
I was moved from Los Angeles to New Jersey in the middle of winter to get thrown into rehab.
My family lied to me to get me to move. Said I’d have the place to myself, they had a condo right on the beach that I was going to stay at rent-free to get “mentally healthy again”
Oh no.
So just throwing it out there now,
Rehab is something the a****t needs to choose for themselves.
Anyway, it’s my 2nd day there, I’m losing my s**t because not only am I going through withdrawals but I’m there against my will in someplace I’ve never been, so I escaped.
I packed my bags. Walked right out the door, not even knowing where I was in the state… and started walking.
I was hoping to figure out which way the beach was, but I was in the middle of the snowy woods with no sense of direction.
I realized that if it took an hour to drive here from the condo, it’ll prob take a lot longer to walk, so I decided to play my luck further and stuck my thumb out to hitchhike a ride.
Not only did a person pick me up and not m****r me, but TWO cars picked me up and didn’t attempt to m****r me! (The first one took me a good portion of the way, the second one got me to the condo)
I, of course, was on my defense, had a pen in hand, ready to attack if anything got weird, but they were kind enough to let me warm up in the car and get me along as far as they could take me.
I thanked them both over and over for their kindness and marched my way up the steps to the condo, only to find no one was home.
When they left me at the rehab center, they took my keys and my phone, so I had no one to call, and no way to let myself in – cue the meltdown.
I’m f*****g livid. Freezing. It’s 16 degrees outside and I’m stuck on the windy oceanfront with a duffel bag of clothes from California, and nowhere to go.
I’m thinking to myself- this is it. I’ve finally f****d up so bad, I’m probably going to die now.
Out of sheer anger at myself and my parents, I decide… I’m going to kick in this condo door and get warm.
But the front door was on a step, which was hard to get the right angle to get a solid kick into it, so I just tried slamming my body up against the door, but felt like I was only doing damage to my body.
Just as I was giving in to the sadness and ready to give up… the door next door opens.
It’s a neighbor I’ve never met who has no idea why some guy is trying to break in next door.
I try to catch my breath to tell him, I’m sorry – I’m their son, I’m just trying to get warm. Etc etc
He was an older man, late 50s, who was making breakfast for his daughter in their kitchen when he heard my kicking at the door.
He invited me in, gave me some hot coffee, started chatting with me while the daughter wanted to show me her school work and tell me about their plans for the day.
They were getting ready to go get her dress for some school event when he asked if there was anyone I could call.
I was able to get in touch with my aunt, who recommended I go back to the rehab center.
I was ready to plead with her there over the phone to let me stay with them, but something about this guy and the kid made me feel safer than anyone from my entire family.
I decided to accept my fate and asked the kind stranger if he could take me back, to which he was more than happy to help.
The car ride back to rehab was the exact opposite experience I had when going into rehab.
We talked about his brother who had similar problems to my own.
He spoke with such love for him, it broke my heart to think I was in the same boat, but he reassured me – if his brother could get better, so can I.
Something truly resonated that day for me.
I didn’t want to be a burden to the world from the pain my parents gave me – I wanted to be healed, and to help heal others like this guy.
The kindest stranger I ever met-
Thank you, Mr. Gray. 🙏
I had just dyed my whole head of hair a very obnoxiously bright pink, and my conservative family were just continuously putting me down about it, saying it’s because I want attention, that it makes me look like a clown, etc. I was starting to regret it after a bit but left it as it was fading making it turn light pink.
While at the store, a random elderly lady approached me and I was prepared for a lecture about how damaging dye can be, but instead she just beamed and said “it’s like cotton candy! How cute!” And then someone she was with gasped when they noticed and agreed, they said it looked amazing and how they wished they could pull it off the way I do. I wanted to jump up and down, I was so happy.
My family was driving through Mexico in a motorhome after my high school graduation. We came to a fork in the road, but there were no signs. So we were stopped there for a bit, as we pulled out maps and tried to figure out which road would go to MĂ©rida. (This was before cell phones, never mind GPS.)
No one noticed the commuter bus behind us until it honked. So we pulled over to let it pass. He pulled up beside us and asked if we needed help. We explained where we were heading, and the driver told us to follow him.
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