Kindness of strangers: A hall-of-fame athlete helped my 94-year-old mum buy a vacuum cleaner
A woman in the queue said she was happy to drive an hour, pick up the vacuum, then bring it to Mum’s house. I was worried – but how wrong I was!
For a 94-year-old woman, my mother is still very busy and active. So when a vacuum cleaner she liked the look of went on sale at a national electronics chain, Mum drove herself to the nearest store to buy it.
Unfortunately, the shop in her area had sold out by the time she got there. The sales assistant told her it was still available in another Melbourne store – but that store was an hour’s drive away. As active as she is, Mum pointed out that at her age, she really could not manage a drive of that length. She asked the sales assistant if they could transfer the vacuum to this store and was flatly told no.
Just as Mum was feeling a bit taken aback by the poor customer service, the woman in the queue behind her interjected. She told Mum that she was happy to drive all that way, pick up the vacuum, then bring it to Mum’s house for her.
The woman in the queue seemed to be a genuinely nice person, so Mum allowed the vacuum to be ordered for her and gave the woman her address.
As Mum recounted this story to me later, my heart sank. I couldn’t envisage a good outcome. But how wrong I was!
The stranger was as good as her word. The next day, she drove all the way to pick up this vacuum cleaner and bring it to my mother’s house. Finally, having delivered the vacuum cleaner, the stranger asked if Mum was OK with putting it all together. Of course she wasn’t, so the woman did it for her.
They kept in touch and even later went out for coffee – Mum doesn’t let anyone go that quickly! It was only later that Mum discovered the woman was actually a very well-known Australian sportswoman: basketballer Michele Timms.
Neither my sister nor I live in Melbourne, so Mum relies on friends and family there for help. That a stranger would step up like that made me feel that there is real hope for the world. The generosity of it is mind-blowing, and something that is unexpected in this day and age.
What is the nicest thing a stranger has ever done for you?
Originally published by theguardian.com. Syndicated material does not necessarily reflect the views of Glamour Canada.
