One time, I assisted a stranger in a wheelchair to descend the stairs. Since there was no ramp, he and the wheelchair needed to be lifted, and there was only one person helping him, so I assisted him.
I was asked my name and my country of origin by the man in the wheelchair as I was leaving (I was in a foreign nation). As I informed him, I’m from Pakistan and I’m wildcard5. He invited me over for lunch at a restaurant across the street. Initially hesitant, I consented. Following our dinner order, he informed me that this was his restaurant and that I was welcome to eat at any time for free. As a condition of accepting his offer, I informed him that he should invite a random street beggar whenever he remembers what I did for him, rather than me coming to eat at his restaurant.
That brief but deep moment made me realize why kindness has its own reward. The man in the wheelchair was having difficulty getting downstairs when I happened to walk by, engrossed in my own world. There was no ramp in sight, so he and his buddy had to manually raise the wheelchair, which was a difficult task for one person to do alone. I acted without hesitation to assist out of instinct. If I were in his shoes, I would hope someone would do the small favor for me.
The man stopped me just as I was about to start my day after we got down. I was unable to identify if the expression in his eyes was one of thankfulness, curiosity, or perhaps both. He wanted to know who I was and where I came from. “I’m wildcard5, from Pakistan,” was my simple response because I was in a foreign nation at the moment.
His next statement surprised me. He grinned and asked me to lunch at a restaurant on the other side of the street. Initially, I was hesitant. I wasn’t sure how to react to the unexpected invitation to dinner, which didn’t happen very often. However, his invitation seemed sincere, so I accepted.
He revealed something else unexpected as we sat at a cafe after crossing the street together. “This is my restaurant,” he declared, pointing around with a subdued triumph. “You are welcome to eat here at any time—it’s free now.”
I was surprised by how giving he was. I had given him a helping hand without anticipating anything in return, and now he was giving me something much more. He did it out of compassion, as a way to return the humanity he had just experienced.
I knew I couldn’t accept the offer, though, not in the manner he had intended. I said to him, “I’ll accept your offer, but with one caveat.”
Inquisitive, he raised an eyebrow. What is that?
Whenever you remember what I did for you, I said, “I want you to invite a random beggar off the street for a meal instead of me coming here to eat for free.”
He listened to my statements for a moment without saying anything. His face gradually lit up with a smile. A nod went through his head. “That is an agreement,” he declared.
Talking about life, travel, and the small ways that the world amazes us, we concluded our dinner. Despite the fact that I never saw him again, I like to think that occasionally, thanks to a random act of generosity between two strangers, a hungry, exhausted, and forgotten person enters his restaurant and discovers a warm lunch waiting for them.
Little actions can occasionally have far-reaching effects that we could never have predicted.