Friday, November 12, 2010

In the end, only kindness matters.

I think one of the greatest feelings we can encounter as humans, is the feeling when someone reaches out to you, and you're able to help them in return.


I was waiting for the bus today, by myself, and another
student comes up to me and starts talking. I forget how he initiated the conversation, but he began asking me questions like what year I was, my major, what classes I take, ect. At first it was a little off-putting, haha. I'm just waiting for the bus, I didn't sign up to play 20 questions.. But the more I spoke with him, I started to find things out, and he started to really like, open up and talk to me. I found out he was born in China, and he's been going to school here for a few years, but doesn't really know anyone too well because he lives off-campus, and he has a lot of trouble with the language. It broke my heart that he seemed to be so...alone. He was getting pretty personal, saying he was going through a tough phase and saying how he really needs to be more thankful for everything. It's really hard to advise someone when you well, don't exactly know them, at all.. but I told him that we all just need to appreciate the little things, like how it's such a beautiful day[which it was]. I can't tell for sure, but it seemed to me like that might've helped him somehow. Just having someone listen, and share their thoughts, and their stories(I told him all about my farm and my small, small school which flat out amazed him haha) can sometimes be just what a person needs.
This weekend is sort of different, I have the dorm to myself. My suitemates are still in and out of course, but my actual roommate went home for her friend's birthday. Usually when she goes home, I go home. Plus I go home pretty often in general, hahaha. But this weekend I decided that I need to actually act like I live here. It's kind of nice being able to go places by myself, don't get me wrong, I love going places with my roommate and friends, but every once in a blue moon, it's refreshing to be on your own. It's nice to be on your own schedule, spending as much time in the world as you'd like doing whatever you see fit. It felt like forever that I roamed around Macy's in a daze, admiring their kitchen-ware that I have no use for here, strolling down their "Holiday Lane", which made me long for Christmas to hurry up and get here.. I'm in like, such a holiday mood :). It's weird though, because at home we honestly don't do much for the holidays, sadly. My parents are busy people, busy farmers. They don't want to spend the time they have to finally sit down, decorating the house. My mom doesn't want to spend all morning taking care of the calves, to come inside and cook a big Thanksgiving dinner. So we don't really go all-out decorating and we usually order a dinner from Hannaford. It makes sense. Sometimes I wish I had the ambition or time to take care of that sort of stuff, maybe now that I'm an "adult" I will :P.
I'm off for round two of exploring this 'city' of mine. I hope everyone's having a great weekend!
Olive

4 comments:

Natalie said...

That's really neat, actually. How in one moment you can go from just a typical day standing at the bus stop, to meeting someone new and learning all about them and possibly making a big difference in their day. It's the little things, haha. :) But yeah, I know what you mean! Just doing things solo can be really nice, not having to worry about pleasing anybody except for yourself for once. And I'm definitely getting in the holiday spirit lately, too. Cannot wait to eat that yummy Thanksgiving food. :D I hope the rest of your weekend has been going well!

Allison said...

I think it's so nice that you weren't stand-offish to this guy you met at the bus stop, but that you took the time to just get to know someone, and to show kindness. I think you probably did more than you realize for him, dear, sweet Olive. Sometimes, I think all it takes is just showing that you care - that someone cares. I think you're such a doll, Olive!
You should totally decorate your house for the holidays - I bet it would surprise your parents so much, and that since they are so busy, they would really appreciate it. There's a ton of DIY stuff you can do so that it's not expensive either!
Enjoy exploring the city - definitely make the most of being in a new place and find places you might not ordinarily go! :)
Have a great week, darling. xo

Helennn Louise said...

I think it was great that you were there to talk to that guy at the bus stop. That one conversation with a stranger can be what makes someone's day :)
I hope you had fun this weekend being solo in the flat. It's nice to have the quiet and gather thoughts. I hope you're enjoying checking out the city :)

Anonymous said...

I MISS YOU. LOTS.