As a general rule, I try to believe in the overall decency of humanity. It's not always the easiest thing to do, especially when the news is consistently full of hatred and violence, while "human interest" stories get only a brief nod on some back page, but it is possible. Most of the time it involves paying attention to the world around you, willfully looking for the little good deeds that are done, even if it's just a smile on the street or a word of encouragement to someone who's trying as hard as they can. But every now and then, the world seems to realize you need more than that, and it blindsides you with a really memorable occurrence.
A number of months ago, Elf, a very close friend of mine, contacted me for help writing up a resumé for one of her friends who had recently lost his job. I am frequently called upon for help with writing and editing (I guess being a Linguist comes in handy sometimes, eh?), so I gave the go-ahead to send it over. In the course
of re-writing and brushing up the resumé, and sympathizing with the state of the economy, her friend, Angel, and I got to be pretty good friends ourselves, and kept in contact as time passed.
My November trip to the East Coast rolled around, and he was nice enough to give Elf and me (yes, it's correct) a place to stay and the use of his car to go visit friends. The three of us had an awesome time together, and I was very sad to say goodbye when they dropped me off at the airport for the trip home. Despite the fact that you probably wouldn't have put the three of us in the same room together, judging by looks, there are a lot of shared interests and outlooks on life, and I wouldn't trade either of them for the world.
Fast forward a few weeks, and I get a ridiculously excited text from Angel, ecstatic over something he found at an electronics store- Best Buy or something like that. He tells me he bought one of whatever-it-is for himself, he's sending me one too, and I should let him know once I get it so we can open it together. I won't lie, I'm chuckling at this point, because I love seeing other people get excited about things, but I also know how trying it can be to have something you really, really want, and not be able to open it just yet, so I offer to let him go ahead and open his, and I'll join in the excitement when I receive mine. No dice, though, he insists on waiting, so I settle in to be patient.
Naturally, the day that the package gets here is the one day I have to stay out until after rush hour. It's the Friday before finals, so I'm cramming frantically with friends after work, and worried about the exam the next day. I finally get home, tired and cold, and find a smallish package in the mail. I find the energy to chuckle again, remembering how excited he was about whatever-it-is, and let him know it got here. I open the package and find a new cd from a group called Florence and the Machine, a band that he introduced me to and I happen to love. The vocalist has an amazing range that matches mine pretty closely, and puts a lot of power and emotion into her songs, which is about 98% of what I look for in music. I send him a very heartfelt thank you, and this is what I get in reply:
That is, quite possibly, the nicest thing that anyone has done for me. Angel is an audiophile and a dj, and I can't imagine having that cd sitting in his house for the couple days it took for mine to get to me without being able to listen to it. So for the next hour and a half, we sat there listening to the cd, sharing critiques and thoughts about the songs, and reinforcing our faith in humanity. Sometimes it takes hard work to keep a positive outlook, and sometimes that hard work is rewarded by having a great person, and a fantastic evening, handed to you on a silver platter. Keep an eye out for both variations, it's so worth it. Cheers!
A number of months ago, Elf, a very close friend of mine, contacted me for help writing up a resumé for one of her friends who had recently lost his job. I am frequently called upon for help with writing and editing (I guess being a Linguist comes in handy sometimes, eh?), so I gave the go-ahead to send it over. In the course
of re-writing and brushing up the resumé, and sympathizing with the state of the economy, her friend, Angel, and I got to be pretty good friends ourselves, and kept in contact as time passed.
My November trip to the East Coast rolled around, and he was nice enough to give Elf and me (yes, it's correct) a place to stay and the use of his car to go visit friends. The three of us had an awesome time together, and I was very sad to say goodbye when they dropped me off at the airport for the trip home. Despite the fact that you probably wouldn't have put the three of us in the same room together, judging by looks, there are a lot of shared interests and outlooks on life, and I wouldn't trade either of them for the world.
Fast forward a few weeks, and I get a ridiculously excited text from Angel, ecstatic over something he found at an electronics store- Best Buy or something like that. He tells me he bought one of whatever-it-is for himself, he's sending me one too, and I should let him know once I get it so we can open it together. I won't lie, I'm chuckling at this point, because I love seeing other people get excited about things, but I also know how trying it can be to have something you really, really want, and not be able to open it just yet, so I offer to let him go ahead and open his, and I'll join in the excitement when I receive mine. No dice, though, he insists on waiting, so I settle in to be patient.
Naturally, the day that the package gets here is the one day I have to stay out until after rush hour. It's the Friday before finals, so I'm cramming frantically with friends after work, and worried about the exam the next day. I finally get home, tired and cold, and find a smallish package in the mail. I find the energy to chuckle again, remembering how excited he was about whatever-it-is, and let him know it got here. I open the package and find a new cd from a group called Florence and the Machine, a band that he introduced me to and I happen to love. The vocalist has an amazing range that matches mine pretty closely, and puts a lot of power and emotion into her songs, which is about 98% of what I look for in music. I send him a very heartfelt thank you, and this is what I get in reply:
That is, quite possibly, the nicest thing that anyone has done for me. Angel is an audiophile and a dj, and I can't imagine having that cd sitting in his house for the couple days it took for mine to get to me without being able to listen to it. So for the next hour and a half, we sat there listening to the cd, sharing critiques and thoughts about the songs, and reinforcing our faith in humanity. Sometimes it takes hard work to keep a positive outlook, and sometimes that hard work is rewarded by having a great person, and a fantastic evening, handed to you on a silver platter. Keep an eye out for both variations, it's so worth it. Cheers!
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