Five Minutes of Kindness

More than thirty years ago, I received a blond, 1950s-era (estimate) piece of furniture for five minutes of kindness.

I had visited a stranger in the hospital, the mother of a friend of someone my mother knew. This woman (I was told) was Catholic, in poor health, and experiencing depression, too.

Our pastor always stressed the importance of ministering to others, and this was my first time "ministering."

I popped a tuna casserole in the oven, grabbed a rosary, and drove away to the hospital across town. My husband worked an afternoon shift at the time. So once I arrived, I could only stay one hour before I had to leave.

I parked, hurried up to the room, and the woman was sound asleep. So I waited.

She awakened five minutes before I had to leave, a bit jolted by a stranger in her room. Her son arrived around the same time. So he made the introduction. I shared a bit of hard-earned inspiration and left.

That was a Monday afternoon. She died Wednesday morning.

Her son said my visit made such a difference to her, that he offered me her favorite piece of furniture, the hutch. But before he could deliver it, another relative claimed it. He was very apologetic. But my visit was from my heart; I wasn't looking to receive anything.

Two years later, that relative went into a nursing home. The son called and once again offered me the hutch. It's a very heavy piece of furniture. But it's gone where we've gone.

When we move from Marycrest to Channahon, we took it with us. When we lost the home in Channahon and moved to my mother's, it was one of the few items that went into our small storage unit. When four of us moved into a small apartment, we took it with us. It went to the first townhome, the second townhome, the third townhome.

Gilded Age Furniture Restoration recently "restored" the piece, along with my grandmother's dresser. The hutch holds some extra special dishes, such as pieces that belonged to familu members who are no longer with us.

Timothy has already claimed the piece after I die.

One of the reasons why this piece is so important to our family is the story behind it. That story proves that each act of kindness, sincerely given, can literally change someone's life.

The world is never not in need of kindness, I think.

Happy Monday!