A FEW days ago my friend Kenny had such a pleasant experience that he took to crowing like a cockerel about it on Facebook. He entitled his posting ‘The power of five pieces of chicken wings’.
“On my last trip to the hotel I usually stayed in KK, I had to wait awhile to get checked-in and was given a normal room. That evening as I was going out for dinner I asked the receptionists if they already had dinner. They replied ‘no’.
“So upon my return, I tapau (bagged) five pieces of chicken wings for them. Today, returning to the same hotel, I was checked-in in no time and was upgraded to the best room in the house …”
Someone responded about good deeds begetting good deeds. I am reminded of the saying, “As we treat the world, so the world treats us” and a story I heard from a motivational speaker. It goes something like this …
An old man and his grandson were fishing by the brook that ran by their little town. Presently, a young man came by in a car. He wound down the window and shouted, “Can you tell me what kind of people live in that town?”
“Why do you ask?” replied the grandpa.
“My firm is thinking of relocating me there and I want to know what kind of company I will keep when I get here.”
“Well, what kind of people live in your present town?”
“Are, they are horrible people, very rude and uncaring.”
“Well, strangely enough, you just about described the people of yonder town.”
“Bah,” said the rude man and drove off in disgust.
A short while later, another car approached and again the driver enquired about the nature of the townsfolk. The old man went through the same routine asking the questioner about the type of people in his town.
“Oh, they are such nice people, so helpful and friendly. I will miss them.”
“Ah,” replied the grandpa, “the people in this area are just like that – ever so nice. You will love it here.”
The man was happy and he drove away with a song in his heart.
“But grandpa,” said the little boy who had been listening quietly all the while, “you always tell me not to lie. You have just done that. You gave a different story to each man.”
“No, my boy, I did not. The world is like an echo. As you see it, so it sees you.”
Kenny’s story seems to confirm that. Instead of getting vexed about the slowness in getting his room, he empathised with the hotel staff who could have been standing behind the counter for hours. He chose to see the goodness of the people and showed them a little kindness. It was not just about the five pieces of chicken. It was what that gift represented. It was about kindness and he was reciprocated in kind.
However, I think we can aspire for more than that. I believe we need not just be motivated by the prospect of the return of a favour to do a favour.
In the 2000 movie ‘Pay It Forward’, a little boy dreamt up a concept to change the world.
It was beguilingly simple. His idea was that for every good turn one receives, one need not repay it but just show kindness to three other persons who in turn would do the same.
This he hoped would create a rippling effect of kindness that might tip the world’s moral balance and make it a better place.
Of course, that is just Hollywood and it is too simplistic, but heck, perhaps the staff of the hotel might just be touched enough by Kenny’s thoughtfulness to extend the same to their other guests who in turn might just continue the chain of goodwill. Now, wouldn’t that be something?