Mosaic Butterfly 27
Unlikely People
Doing Extraordinary
Things
New stories published every Monday beginning October 1, 2021
2,947 Acts of Kindness
By J.E. Crecelius
When my son was diagnosed with a debilitating and degenerative neurological disorder I relocated to be closer to him. It was January 2020 right before the global pandemic COVID-19 made its way to the United States. In March my brother-in-law died from COVID-19. In the next several months I lost nine family members and friends to the virus!
The hospitals weren’t allowing visitors when our son had surgery. I had to wait in the parking lot while our 29-year-old “little boy” was going through major surgery and didn’t know what the outcome would be.
I was sitting in my car screaming and banging on the steering wheel, scared to death and mad as hell at God and the world! My eyes were clouded by my tears. I couldn’t see who was knocking on my window. I thought it was probably a police officer to tell me to get my act together! Snotty from crying I quickly wiped my nose on my shirt sleeve before rolling down the window.
It wasn’t an officer but a tall gangly curly-headed young man with a superhero face mask. “What the hell!” He lowered his mask to reveal a big toothy grin. My hands white-knuckling the steering wheel started to loosen. He held out a brown paper lunch bag that looked like a child had colored flowers on.
“No thank you, I don’t have any cash with me!”
He gave me a card that read;
Smile Kit
This smile kit was
Created just for you
It’s filled with love
And fun things to do
He said, “This is for you! Will it make you happy?”
I was speechless!
The bag was packed with M&M’s, a granola bar, kleenex, a self-adhesive artificial mustache, and a bottle of bubbles. Without thinking I put the mustache on and opened the bottle of bubbles. I got out of my car and ran after him to thank him. When he turned to look at me he started laughing at me with the mustache. Then we started blowing bubbles together.
Soon, others who had been waiting for their loved ones in their cars got out and joined us with their bags. As we stood together, at a safe distance, someone sprayed the silly string from their Smile Kit all over me. We all burst out laughing.
His proud mom, Margie, was nearby. She told us her son, 23-year-old Kirk, had been in a car accident 7 years ago sustaining a traumatic brain injury. We were at the hospital where his life was saved.
Margie told us that every day since the hospitals have closed doors to anyone other than the patient, Kirk has been giving Smile Kits to loved ones waiting in their cars.
Early in the pandemic Kirk had wanted to do something to help. His mom asked him to think about what skills he could use, to which he answered: “I can be kind.”
Kirk brings Smile Kits to the hospital parking lot every morning. He also checks on his neighbors and takes them his favorite peanut butter cookies he bakes with the help of his younger sister. When one of his neighbors got COVID-19 and had to quarantine, Kirk walked her dog 2 times a day every day.
During the summer Kirk raised daisy’s and gave flower bouquets to over 100 women that summer. He also grew tomatoes to donate to a local food bank.
The young man was told he would never walk or talk and deified those expectations and his own anxiety about speaking to strangers.
“Kindness is my superpower. I want to make people happy.”
Since the beginning of the pandemic Kirk has done other acts of kindness. He delivered Easter baskets to random houses dressed as a bunny. He made pumpkin pies for all of his neighbors for Thanksgiving and he left secret Santa bags on 120 doorsteps in December.
