Angels Among Us: A Random Act of Kindness

The wind howled as if in sheer agony,
Suffering the torment and defeat
Of a senseless reality.

"Too many street people!"
It screamed relentlessly,
"All hungry, wet and cold.
No one to feed them,
No one to take them in."

The snow flew furiously,
Trying to crawl
Into every possible nook and cranny,
Trying to hide its shame.

"Pay it forward,"
A crippled, old man reminded himself,
As he picked up
The steaming hot, cup of coffee,
Left by a generous, young man
Of limited means,
Moments earlier.

With a loving smile on his face,
He had carefully placed it
At the very bottom
Of a red, empty, open mesh barrel
Planted on the street corner,
Like a rich tree, bearing fruit
For the poverty stricken.

"There are angels among us,"
Said another elderly, broken man,
As he picked up the heavy, wool socks
Left there by the crippled man,
Who had pulled them out of his pocket,
Payment for his cup of coffee.

"What can I do
That has not been done already?"
He asked himself, silently.

Moments later,
Compelled by compassion's desire to give,
He helped a local, native bag lady
Waiting at the traffic light,
To get cross the busy street.

"Random acts of kindness
Never go unnoticed,"
She reminded herself,
Slipping a single coin,
Probably the only one she had,
Into the ice cold hand
Of the next street person,
A young, destitute woman.

The howling wind stopped howling;
The snow stopped falling,
But the acts of mercy continued on.

No one really knows what random acts can do.