When you help someone, you make two lives just a little better

Most of us see and interact with other people almost every day as we go about living our daily lives.

Regardless of where you happen to be, if there are other people around it's a good bet that someone there could use a little help of some kind.

Whether it's the child in the corner store who's 8 cents short of having enough money to buy a candy bar or the old man at the pharmacy who's having trouble reading the label on a bottle of cough medicine, helping out with a little spare change or an extra pair of eyes can make a person's day just a little better.

And guess what? It'll make your day better too.

I'd like to tell you a quick story...

Once back in the day I was walking through a Walmart parking lot when I happened to look down and see a dirty white envelope laying on the asphalt.

Just as I was getting ready to step over the envelope and walk into the store I noticed that it looked a little "fat". There was obviously something inside, and I had a feeling it might be something important.

I picked up the envelope and peeked inside.

What I saw took my breath away. It was a stack of $100 bills - 21 of them in all.

This happened during a time in my life when $2,100 worth of "found money" would have really made a big difference in my own life. And truth be told, I momentarily thought about sticking it in my pocket and keeping it.

But as I walked on towards the store entrance I realized I couldn't do it.

With mixed emotions I walked up to the service desk and told the attendant that I had found a large sum of money out in the parking lot.

She immediately got on the P.A. system and said "Would the person who has lost a large sum of money come to the service desk to claim it?"

After a couple of minutes had passed a lady who must have been at least in her late-70's approached the service desk with tears in her eyes.

The lady said she had been saving a portion of every monthly check for the past year so she could buy one last round of special Christmas gifts for her grandchildren because she felt that her declining health might soon take a major turn for the worse.

The thing is, she didn't even know the envelope was missing from her purse until she heard the announcement on the P.A. and stopped to check.

The money was obviously hers because she was able to correctly identify the envelope (it had the Appalachian Power logo on it) and perfectly describe its contents.

The sweet lady thanked me several times for finding her money and returning it before she walked away to finish her shopping. When she left there were tears of joy in her eyes.

But she wasn't the only one with tears running down her face. Truth be told, there were three of us.

What had started out as a sad occasion (because I knew I had to turn that money in instead of keeping it for myself) turned into one of the sweetest days of my life.

And I know that sweet little lady must have went home feeling a lot better too.

I didn't tell this story to make you believe I'm a saint. Far from it. Like I said at the beginning, I seriously contemplated keeping the "found money" for myself.

But looking back on it after all these years I'm so glad I didn't.

The bottom line is this: You don't have to find a cure for a dreaded disease or put an end to world hunger in order to change a life for the better.

Something as simple as picking up the tab for a hungry child's candy bar or sharing a friendly smile and a word of encouragement with someone who's having a bad day can make a huge difference in that person's life.

And it'll make a difference in your life too.

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