Pay It Forward

Jim and I took his dad, Earl, out this weekend. We wanted to take him to get his hair cut and then out to a nice lunch. We enjoy spending time with Earl, but we don't do it nearly as often as we should. We try to make a point to see him at least once per week,and this time we wanted to get him out of his assisted living apartment for a change. Little did we know that we would be the ones blessed and encouraged on this outing.

As we walked into Great Clips, I noticed an adorable bright red haired boy getting his hair cut into a mohawk. His dad was watching the progress and chatting with his son a bit throughout the visit. As I took Earl to sit down and wait for his appointment, Jim checked him in at the front desk. He quietly explained to the employee that Earl had dementia and may not make much sense at times and to let the hairdresser know this ahead of time.  As he sat down, I continued watching the young boy's mohawk come to life.

Eventually Earl was called back to the hairdresser's chair, and Jim and I waited patiently in the waiting room, continuing to watch the cute little boy and his dad.  After a while, the mohawk was complete, and they proceeded to check out and leave Great Clips.

When Earl was finished getting his hair cut (looking very handsome!) we went to check out and pay and were told that his haircut was already paid for.  When she saw the look of confusion on our faces, the store manager came over to us and explained that the young man with the red-headed son had paid for Earl's haircut when he paid for his little boy's.

We couldn't believe it. We felt stunned. No stranger had ever done something for us simply "because" before. We didn't know what to say, and there was no way to thank the young man for being so thoughtful and generous to complete strangers.

After talking about it, Jim and I decided how we could thank him. We could pass it on, pay it forward, do a random act of kindness for someone else. We have prayed and asked God to open our eyes to an opportunity to bless a stranger in our path. We will continue to wait for God to put something on our hearts, and I am asking everyone who reads this story to pay it forward as well.

I have no way of knowing if that young man is a Christian or not, but I do know that he is sure acting like a Christian should act. What better way to thank him than to pay it forward, not only myself, but all my readers as well.

If you have every been blessed by a random act of kindness, either by a total stranger or someone you know, please share with us below in a comment.  Make sure to pay it forward as well.