There are people in our lives, like family and friends, who stick by you through thick and thin. They are your safety net, your shoulder to cry on, and your wise advisors throughout life. While some may fade away and new ones come in, these are the people who care for your overall well-being. They always want what’s best for you and support you in all of your endeavors.
And then there are the others… The newcomers who inspire you to become a better person. The stranger who tickles your imagination and makes you wonder if magic really does exist. Maybe they made you see a different side of life you’ve never thought of. Or perhaps they shone a light inside of you in a way your family and friends never could. Whatever they did, you’ll not soon forget it.
For the most part, these strangers leave your life as quickly as they entered it, but the impression left lasts a lifetime. Sometimes these strange tales are far too good to keep to yourself! Below are a collection of fantastical stories from people all over the world who were changed by the goodness of others.
30. A Heartfelt Story That Ended In A Wonderful Friendship
“I lost my iPhone 3G back in 2010 or 2009? 2008. The second-generation iPhone that was the first to have 3g, and among the first massively-produced ‘smart’ phones. I stupidly camped out for that stupid phone like an idiot. That next day, I went overseas on a gov’t work trip to Taiwan.
I lost my phone on my first night there. I retraced my steps but nothing. I resigned to the fact that I lost my brand new iPhone 3G. The next day, I was walking to the shipyard in the busy city of Keelung (the port city of Taipei); and this guy runs out of a restaurant and flags me down. He motions to me to go to his cab. I said, ‘Ah it’s ok, I don’t need a cab… ‘
He shakes his head, runs inside his cab, and GIVES ME MY PHONE BACK, along with a pen that fell out of my pocket into his cab. I was absolutely shocked. I thanked him so much and he just smiled this biggest smile. I couldn’t speak Mandarin nor Taiwanese, nor could he speak English. But body language is universal.
He motioned me to join him for breakfast back at the restaurant he ran out of where he saw me stroll by. He ordered some super delicious Taiwanese-style noodles and I ate them. He PAID FOR THE MEAL. I tried to compensate him for all his troubles; HE REFUSED.
This old man worked double-duty at that restaurant and as a taxi driver, and you can see on his hands and face all the hard manual labor he did through the decades of his life. Oh, ya, his wife worked at that restaurant too.
I demanded that I know his phone number.
For years after, my colleagues and I used him exclusively for our taxi rides around town. I’d post his number on our ship’s quarter deck and label it ‘TAXI.’Also, my colleagues and I would make the trip to eat at the restaurant where they worked as much as we could. The restaurant closed down about 5 years ago though.
I even called him to take me to and from the airport; which is comparatively a large fare over there. I didn’t mind. He deserved it. I couldn’t find him anymore when I went back a few years ago for vacation (~2016). I am hoping upon hope he finally retired to the countryside in a small home on the hillside and living out his days in quiet with his wife.” DanTMWTMP
29. One Man’s Inebriation Turned Out To Be The Entire Train’s Delight!
“I was on an eastbound train from Colorado two days before Christmas. There was some kind of incident in another car around 11:00 that night – a dude got wasted and started threatening other – and we had to make a stop so that the local police could come and collect him.
After the delay, the conductor came over the speakers and announced that if anyone was feeling upset or shaken up by the incident, one of the passengers had offered to play his guitar in the snack car and anyone who was awake was welcome to come down and join in for a singalong. I’m always down for weird train activities so I decided to grab my harmonica from my bag and head down.
There were about fifteen of us in the car, ranging in age from 16 to mid-70s and from all over the country. We sang every song we could think of that even kind of referenced a train. We were somewhere in rural Nebraska at that point and nobody had cell service to look up lyrics, so at times I was pretty sure that we were making up more of the words than we actually remembered. The conductor came through after a while and offered to play a few songs, so the guy with the guitar handed it off and pulled out a mandolin, and my harmonica got passed around the group while one guy drummed along on his backpack.
After a while, the conductor got up and left, then came back with a copy of The Polar Express. He read it out loud to our absolutely captivated group of mostly adult travelers while the snow flew all around us in the night, and I swear that for a few minutes our trip felt every bit as magical as the visit to Santa Claus in the story.
Sometime well after the snack car was supposed to have been vacated for the night, we capped things off with the most ridiculously earnest rendition of “Don’t Stop Believing” that has ever been performed and went our separate ways. I never saw anyone from our little makeshift band again, but I’ll always remember that weird, wonderful late-night celebration of Journey and the magic of winter travel that came about because some guy was a jacka*s on a train.” dreadhorse
28. Those Who Toot Together, Stay Together
“I have been waiting for a question like this.
This was about two years ago when I was in university. I was having some gas pains, so I went to use the bathroom. I was the only one in there, but someone came in shortly after, so I decided to wait until she was done. She apparently was in the same situation as me, so we were both just sitting in silence waiting for the other to leave, occasionally letting out tiny toots.
Finally, she says, ‘Can we both just *************************?’ I laugh and say, ‘Yes please!’ And for about a minute after, both of us are simultaneously laughing and *****ing. Laughing because we’re *****ing, and *****ing because we’re laughing.
We finished at about the same time and said, ‘Hello,’ as we washed our hands. I never saw her again. I still giggle every time I think of it.” CocoaAndToast
27. They Pulled The Perfect Prank And His Sister Paid The Price
“At the St. Louis Zoo, there is a fountain that had five spouts to drink from that always had water running. When I was about ten I discovered that by covering up one of the spouts with the water coming out, the other four rose a bit.
The set up was nearly perfect. We walked by the fountain and my younger sister goes to drink out of the center one. I immediately walk to her right and raise my hands to cover the two spouts on that side. I couldn’t help but be sad that there was no one to cover the spouts on her left. Then it happened.
A boy across the path saw what I was going to do and ran over to the other two spouts. Then he silently looked at me and mouthed ‘one,’ ‘two,’ ‘three!’ We both covered the spouts and the water in the center one shot straight into my sister’s face (it was beautiful). Then he took off to his family and I ran away from my sister for my life.” sithkazar
26. He Was The Kindest Stranger They Ever Met…And They Never Saw Each Other Again
“I was about 10 years old and I had a pair of HEELYS and they were the coolest freaking thing on the earth. I would roll all over on those things and thought I was the bomb.
We were in China, spending a few weeks in Beijing. I was rolling around in Tiananmen Square, hit a crack and lost one of the wheels. I looked around for about an hour, but to no avail. I was probably visibly bummed, as my Heelys, the things that made me the bomb, were now ineffective and basically ruined. The next morning, I was walking through the square on the way to meet my friends, and an older gentleman ran up to me and stopped me- he had found my wheel.
He said that he had seen me rolling around and saw me looking for the wheel after I fell. He saw that I gave up, and stuck around for another hour to keep looking after I left. He came there the next morning with no expectation that I’d pass through but wanted to be there just in case. I’m not sure who was happier, me that I got my wheel back or him because he didn’t think he’d see me in literally the world’s busiest square. I said thank you and…that was about it. We both had places to be and that was that.” raddlesnake
25. They Had A Fairytale Evening and Everyone Remembered It
“I was walking somewhere on the Westend in London on a weekend looking to buy a cap cause it was almost summer and that day was really warm. A woman from behind called me and asked where Chinatown was. I know where it is but where I was at that point I had no idea how to explain to her. She was with two children. So rather than tell her where to go (which would take me a while to explain) I asked them to follow me. They did.
I held the hand of the youngest and we all walked hand in hand in the direction of Chinatown. While we were walking, somehow we (I and the mother) started chatting.
They are from France. She is of Asian descent. She works for a French company in southern France, she’s a single parent and the boys are on a school break. The French father disappeared a long time ago.
I felt a pang of sadness. Here was a lovely family but no father. It was a casual conversation but me being very emotional I choked up a little.
Finally, we reached Chinatown. Before I could wish them a good day the mother invited me to join them for dinner. I was surprised. Here I was a total stranger (male in his late 30s) was being invited for a meal by this lovely family.
I am shy by nature so I casually declined and wished them a good evening and to enjoy their dinner. She thanked me profusely and we bid our goodbyes and walked the opposite direction.
It must have been two or three minutes of walking when I realized how foolish I was. I went back and started looking for them. Thank god I spotted them again. They were taking photos near the arch of Chinatown. I approached them and I said yes I would like to join them for dinner as I was also starving. She seemed pleased and happy and I started asking where they wanted to eat. After taking photos we headed for an eat-all-you-can restaurant.
I was so happy the entire time. We had dinner like we were a family. I could also sense that they were happy. We chatted the entire time and she had to translate our conversation to the boys in French. Since they were fatherless, for about an hour I was like a father to the two boys. I accompanied the youngest back and forth in getting his food downstairs. I had to show the oldest where to find the washroom.
We finished the dinner and we paid the bill (I insisted to pay mine). It was already dark when we got out of the restaurant. It was around 10 pm already. I asked them where they’re headed and she said back to their hotel. Where? She said, Hammersmith. Good lord! That’s far from where we were.
She was clearly not familiar with London and she was frantically looking on her map. London is not that safe so I offered to accompany them to their hotel. We took the tube to Hammersmith. It took us maybe 30 minutes to get to the nearest station to their hotel. From the station, we had to walk a good 10 to 15 minutes in semi-darkness back to the hotel. And finally, we spotted the hotel. At that point, I felt a bit sad. I enjoyed my time with them and it’s time to say our goodbyes.
In front of the revolving door, we thanked each other and hugged each one of them. We said our goodbyes and the boys shouted back, ‘Merci, Monsieu!’ as they walked back to the building. I started walking back to the station. But before I turned the corner I looked back at them for the last time just to be sure that they’re ok.
I usually don’t stay too late when I’m out in London but that night was worth it. I will never forget this day for the rest of my life.” cjrynr
24. He Was Convinced They Were Already Wed… Little Did They Know What The Future Held For Them
istock“NYC bar: I was on a first date and there was an old guy at the bar – looked like an old fisherman from a novel – and he was convinced my date and I were already married. He went on and on about it. We said we weren’t married and he told us we were meant to be together and would be married a long time. He talked with us for a good 15 minutes about this.
My date and I did get married about a year later and have been together almost 25 years now.” DangReadingRabbit
Another User Comments:
“I’m pretty sure your husband time traveled back to that night as his future self.” puhrincess
23. They Knew What To Do, No Questions Asked
“The day my dad died I was holding it together pretty well. Late that night I went to Target to have a moment to just zone out, and buy a few groceries.
As I got to the check-stand with my arms full of stuff, I dropped a container of sour cream and it exploded everywhere. I completely lost control of myself and started to cry. The ugly cry. I was instantly surrounded by a group of women who just took charge of the whole situation. They helped me get everything paid for, cleaned up, and one lady even got a new sour cream.
No words were spoken, but their compassion and take charge attitude has stayed with me since.” misdolnurs2517
22. They Were Strangers In Traffic…But Friends At Heart
“I had about a 2-hour drive from Columbus to the Cleveland area. I tend to drive on the faster side, and therefore pass a lot of people. I noticed about 20 minutes into the drive that the car behind me was still the same one that got onto the highway right behind me. We ended up driving the entire 2 hours right next to each other or in front of/behind each other. We created space in lanes to help the other pass the slower cars and made sure the other wouldn’t fall behind. As I was getting off the highway, he honked his horn, gave me a big smile, and waved. It has been my favorite driving experience so far!” livecaterpillarflesh
21. Pokemon Trainers Must Battle Each Other: It’s A Rule These Two Refuse to Forget!
“I was playing on my Nintendo DS in the subway when I caught a random connection. I looked up to see if I could spot the other person with a DS, and wound up locking eyes with this incredibly intense little boy who was seated a few benches away from me.
‘DO YOU HAVE POKEMON?’ he asked, and as it turned out, I did, in fact, have Pokemon. With that, our fate was sealed. There’s this thing in the Pokemon games where, if you meet the gaze of another trainer on your journey, then you must do battle. I had just experienced this in real life.
He destroyed me. All level 100s. Felt like I was an extra in the darn anime doing battle with the protagonist.” mus_maximus
20. He Paid It Forward And Had An Enlightening Few Moments
“I was leaving the gym and walked down a long hallway, and didn’t remember having any money on me.
As soon as I stepped outside, I heard a coin drop and looked down and $2 seemed to have fallen from somewhere on me. It was strange because I didn’t have any money on me, and it would have fallen off of me inside while walking, I thought. It rolls and I pick it up. I was confused because I don’t know where the $2 came from.
I look up and there’s a homeless man in a wheelchair playing harmonica who I otherwise would have passed by. I gave the $2 to him. He said thank you, I said no problem. I began to walk away and he said ‘Good, and you?’. I played along and said, ‘Oh, good! Where did you learn to play the harmonica?’ He proceeded to tell me that he used to play all sorts of instruments until he had his stroke and showed me that one of his arms didn’t work anymore.
He was a nice guy, and it made my day a bit better. It was a nice and humbling moment.” StencilBoy
19. He Just Needed Some Help… So He Did What No One Else Would
“I was about 16, at my and my friend’s favorite pizza shop. This place had 1$ gigantic slices of NY style pizza perfection. We went there about 4 times a week being poor high school kids. We knew everyone there, and this night it seemed half our junior and senior class was there. The ‘popular’ kids and all. Just kind of a madhouse in there, but ‘the place to be’ that night apparently.
I was sitting on the outside end of our booth, 6 of us at the table (in a room of like 15 of these booths) when an extremely dirty, toothless, very slow-moving old man came in and began going table to table asking someone to help him tie his shoes. It seemed his back was so destroyed he couldn’t bend down to do it himself. I watched everyone either ignore him or tell him to *** off. I knew he was coming to my table eventually and I was so nervous because I was dumb and cared what everyone thought of me, and all these ‘cool’ kids and older girls I didn’t know well were watching the guy go around and making fun of him.
I’m sorry there’s just no way I could be mean to someone I don’t know, I got right down there on my knee on the dirty pizza shop floor and tied Homeboy’s shoes for him. He said thank you so much and walked out, never asked anyone for money or anything. I never saw him again. That is one small moment that makes me proud of myself.” LoIIip0p
18. He Offered A Simple Gift They Would Remember For Years To Come
“In Osaka last year, we landed at around 11 pm and we’re trying to find our way to our Airbnb. It was drizzling so we were walking in the rain because we didn’t want to have to open our luggage to get our coats out. An older guy going the opposite direction suddenly holds his umbrella out to us.
We politely declined because he’d have to go out of his way to walk us to our Airbnb. He smiled and held his umbrella out again, saying, ‘Present.’ He wanted to give us his umbrella so we wouldn’t get wet. That was the sweetest way to start off our vacation. Japanese people are some of the kindest, nicest people in the world.” clarksophie
17. That Little Boy Will Never Forget This Stranger’s Kindness
“I was in the US Navy at the time and we pulled into port in Norway. We had a couple of days to explore and I went to the closest city, Bergen. While in the main square area of town, just down the road from their fish market, there was a small boy, maybe 3 years old, and his father. The boy had a large red balloon but it was windy and it got away from him. His father made a grab for it and missed but obviously couldn’t run after it and leave his kid.
It was blowing generally in my direction and I made a quick dash for it and managed to catch it out of the air before it blew away. I then crouched down and held it out for the boy. He looked like he was about to start crying but immediately brightened up with the kind happiness only a child can have. He took the balloon and his father just gave me a small smile and a nod. I returned the smile and nod and we went on our way. This moment always sticks out to me.” Stroinsk
16. Her Motherly Instincts Kicked In To Help Warm A Shivering Church-Goer
“When I was studying abroad in Lithuania, I volunteered at a soup kitchen and every now and again there would be an older lady helping out who dropped off supplies. We would smile at each other and say hello even through the language barrier.
Well one night, I went to Easter mass in the town I was volunteering in and it was warmer during the day so I didn’t think about bringing a heavier jacket once it got dark, not to mention the church was this old massive building.
So I’m sitting through mass and I’m getting colder and start shivering pretty noticeably when all of a sudden I feel someone ***** a scarf over my shoulders. I turn around and it’s the lady who would drop off supplies at the soup kitchen! Once mass was over I tried to return the scarf but she refused to take it back. I did my best to extend my gratitude through the language barrier but I’m sure she knew.
It was the most beautiful and kindest thing that has ever happened to me. This was the last time I saw her and I will never forget her kindness towards me. It still tears me up thinking about it.” Lithuanian_Rooster
15. He Did Her A Favour Neither Of Them Will Soon Forget
“I met a young woman who was crying her eyes out in the back of the train station’s CVS while I was there picking up stamps before heading onto the train to catch my flight home. She had a very young (~2) child with her and the kid was getting progressively more panicky that his mom was losing it in public. She was underdressed for the snowstorm outside, though the kid was bundled up properly in oversized clothes that looked like they might have been hers.
They both only spoke Spanish, but I was able to go up and ask what was going on. The young mom wailed, but the little boy was very interested in my big rolling suitcase. I offered, in Spanish, to watch him for a few minutes while she got things sorted out and cleaned herself up in the bathroom, then took him on a walk through the food aisles and let him pick out some snacks, which I bought for him.
About fifteen minutes later she came out of the bathroom looking like a different person. She cried again when I offered her the bag of groceries and a twenty, which was all the cash I had on me, and tried not to accept it until I insisted. She thanked me profusely, the little kid hugged me, and they left into the Boston winter.
I can’t imagine how bad things must have been to trust a stranger with her kid, but it was one of those moments where I realized I had the opportunity to make an actual difference in the way this kid lived for at least the next week or so. He was well mannered and, as someone who’s volunteered in at-risk grade school classrooms, didn’t give off the impression that trusted adults had ever harmed him. He was just hungry and scared about whatever was going on with his mom. I have no idea where they are and I hope they’re both okay.” [deleted]
14. He Went On An Adventure Of A Lifetime And Made A Life-Long Friend Too
“I was in Legazpi, Philippines, and Avengers just came out (summer 2012), and I went to go watch it at the local theatre in town. The ship just left the city, and I was relieved of duty; as now it was vacation time for me after months at sea sailing from Perth, AU, to Legazpi, PI, via the treacherous Makassar Straits.
After the movie, it got dark out, and I wandered around town and got lost. I was trying to find a way back to the hotel, but Legazpi was a bit difficult to navigate on foot.
This guy in his motorcycle-sidecar taxi/tuk-tuk zooms up to me and asks if I’m lost. I say I’m ok, that I don’t need a taxi. But he insisted I enter his tuk-tuk; that he’d take me to the town festival that was going on for free.
I obliged, and he sped off with me inside. He goes, ‘My friend, you were about to get mugged by those dozen squatters.’
He may have been fishing for a fare, or maybe he wasn’t. To me though, his face and demeanor genuinely came off as a hardworking super nice guy. If he didn’t, well… then I applaud him for being an amazing actor and he’s in the wrong line of work.
We chilled at the festival and got to know each other over a couple of beers (on me). Afterward, he took me down this dark, dark path, and I got a bit apprehensive. He kept saying, ‘Don’t worry, I’m taking you to my house for dinner!’
And yes, he took me to his tiny friggin shack of a house near the ocean for dinner. His wife was cooking, and he had two tiny kids running around happy their daddy is back home. We ate a great meal, and he dropped me off back at the hotel. No charge. What the ****!! Take my $20!!! Nope. Ok, fine, how about $40, and you show me the Mayan Volcano and all the cool stuff around here tomorrow? He accepted.
Next morning comes around, he shows up at my hotel. We take off and he takes me to these Dutch church ruins that got decimated by a volcanic eruption in the 1600s or 1700s, hiked all around these awesome caves, and strolled around the black sand beaches. We had an incredible time. I give him $60 USD (hid another $20 behind another $20 lol; as the bills were crisp enough that you can kind of make it seem like one bill).
He discovered this as I was walking away and I laughed at him and waved back… he had no choice but to keep it. I wished him and his family well. He is/was a good person.
We kept in touch via email, except he didn’t have his own computer, nor did he have his own email address (he wasn’t tech-savvy). He’d use his friends’ email addresses to email me about his kids and stuff over the next few weeks.” DanTMWTMP
13. Her Hopefulness Got Him Through A Tough Time
“My son was in a pretty serious accident. I was a wreck in the ICU waiting room. A little girl maybe about 9 or 10 years old was with her family, saying goodbye to her great grandmother. She waltzed right up to me and said, ‘Sir, why are you crying?’ I explained my son was very sick. She handed me a miniature puppy doll and told me it was lucky and my son would get better. She was right, he did and I still keep that little puppy on my dresser and think of that sweet child.” Stillloveyou112
12. He Could Tell That Young Boy Was In Trouble, And Helped Him The Only Way He Knew How
“I’ll share the cliff-notes version since it sounds so unreal. Years ago I walked to a bridge with the intention of taking my own life by jumping off. I met a guy there who wouldn’t stop hovering around me, eventually, he approaches me and tells me that I have bad spirits around me and that I should keep my head up and not give in to them. He then asks if he can ‘smudge me.’
I didn’t know what that was but agreed anyway. He pulls out sage, a lighter and a shell from his backpack and proceeds to bless me right there. As soon as he finishes a bunch of birds (seagulls, crows, and pigeons) all come flying over and fly in circles above us. He said that they were telling me my life was about to turn around and then he said goodbye and left.
My life did change that day, big time. And when my mind occasionally creeps back to dark places, I think of him and it pulls me back.” KingOFTheGoobers
11. This Hero Amongst The Rubble Helped A Child’s Hope Stay Alive
“When I was fourteen, I was trapped in the rubble of an earthquake. I spent six hours crawling towards a man whose face I never had the opportunity to see. Se was a citizen who didn’t leave his name with anyone and never came forward, after the fact. It has always bothered me that I will likely never find out who he was or tell him how much comfort his voice gave me during those horrible hours. When I saw pictures of the space I ended up in, much later, I couldn’t (and can’t) understand how he was able to stand where he stood for six hours without injuring himself or suffering some sort of emotional trauma himself. He’s my hero.” triailangel4
10. He Knocked On The Door, Expecting Nothing, And Got The Best Gift Ever
“When an older gentleman knocked on my door one day and asked if he could possibly come inside and revisit the home in which he had lived over 55 years ago.
It was a pleasure to show him around and to hear his recollection of things that had happened within those walls many years ago some of which were eye-openers.
I never saw him again because he was visiting from the other coast, where he now lives. Still, he told me tales of the house and neighborhood I won’t forget.” starcz0
9. One Had No Logs, The Other Had No Pit…They Were Destined To Meet!
“I was out at a beach with my family for a bonfire. The only problem was that we got there too late and there were no more open pits. We sat about on the sand for about an hour until a man came up to us telling us that he had run out of logs. Seeing as we had no pit and that they were freezing without a fire, we took him up on his offer and joined his family around their pit. We sat until midnight talking about music from the ’70s and talking about our lives. Coolest bunch of people I’ve met in a while.” jdax2
Another User Comments:
“Strangers inviting to share fire pits with other strangers when none are left are the best. I’ve had it happen a few times and it always ends up being the nicest people who treated us like part of their family.” firelikedis
8. She Reacted Instinctively To Someone In Pain And She’ll Always Be Remembered
“The day I found out my grandmother had a stroke and would never walk or talk again, I was away at college. I finally broke down in a bathroom. A girl came in and asked if I needed a hug. I was crying so hard that I really didn’t get a look at her face. I cried on her shoulder for about 10 minutes and then had to pull myself together and leave for class. I never explained myself and she never asked. I never recognized or spoke to her again. I wonder if she sometimes saw me on campus and wondered what was up and if I was okay.” AvadaKedavras
Another User Comments:
“It’s one of the girl rules. Whenever you see a girl crying in the toilet you have to hug. Hope you’re doing better now.” michiru82
7. This Kind Stranger Encouraged This Young Child To Keep Reading And He Does
“I’ve told this story before, but people liked it so I will share again:
When I was a kid, we didn’t have a lot of money, so we often shopped at thrift stores. What I loved about that was that you could get 10 books for a dollar, so I would plant myself in front of the book section and make piles of which one I wanted to get and then decided after I’d gone through them all.
One day, an older lady saw me sitting with my piles and asked if I liked to read. I told her I did and showed her a few of the books I found that I liked. She smiled and then pulled a dollar out of her purse, handed it to me and said, ‘Promise me that you’ll keep reading.’ I was so happy and immediately stood up and said that I would. She smiled and walked away and I went back to my piles able to pick out an extra 10 books to take home.
It was just a small act of kindness for her, but for me having a random stranger encourage my love of reading and making me promise to never stop definitely had a lot to do with my continued love of reading. This was over 20 years or so ago, but I still think of her whenever I buy a new book.” –eDgAR-
6. Everybody Wins In This Situation: She Did The Right Thing
“I was on a flight once and my seat was right next to a woman with a screaming baby. I love babies so I offered to hold her for the woman, who was clearly frazzled and had her arms full trying to get settled. She handed the baby over and I calmed her down and held her for most of the flight. At one point, the mother went to the bathroom and the flight attendant came over and offered me another seat so I wouldn’t be bothered by the baby. I declined and played with the baby the whole flight. I loved it. It was a win-win-win. The mom got a few minutes to herself, I got to play with a baby, and the rest of the passengers didn’t have to listen to a screaming baby anymore.” manda_hates_you
5. He Learned That Christmas Really Is A Magical Time Of Year
“It was the night before Christmas Eve, about 8:30 pm. My mom was trying to sell our place, we’d moved a few blocks away in with my new stepdad. The driveway needed to be clear and there was about a foot and a half of snow to shovel. I was still pretty young and it was going to be a big job.
I trudged over there with my shovel, and just started the first row when a random guy in a snowplow turned in and cleared the whole driveway in two minutes, easy. He was wearing the red plaid jacket and toque combo – classic Canadian look.
I was worried as we hadn’t hired a snow removal guy, but he just waved and said Merry Christmas and drove off. Thanks, Snowplow Guy, you taught me a thing or two about Christmas spirit.” SneakNSnore
4. He Learned What It Meant To Pay It Forward
“So about 11 years ago I visited India. I went to a Sikh temple and sat down to enjoy langer (free food served by Sikhs to anyone who walks in). I was served food by this volunteer and we started chatting after lunch and became buddies. So fast forward. I am visiting another Sikh temple in the Himalayas and in the kitchen, there was only one volunteer when a large bus filled with people pulled in. I went up to the guy and asked if he needed help and he gladly accepted it. So I start serving food to people sitting in the lines and guess who I see sitting down? My buddy from the first Sikh temple. It was great seeing him and we said our hellos…”
3. He Was A Proper Gentleman All The Way To The End
“I met a well dressed older gentleman at a train station in London. He struck up a conversation about the departures board, and being a 20-year old woman, I was hesitant to talk back, but I like chatting to people and decided to keep the convo going.
He ended up being extremely easy to talk to, I ended up telling him I was waiting for a train to take me to the airport so I could see my boyfriend in Hong Kong whom I hadn’t seen for months, and he ended up telling me all about his life and his amazing family, and just be all-around charming.
He was in London for the day to pick up a passport so he could whisk his wife away on holiday, and he just made me smile the way he was so smitten with her.
He ended up leaving after about half an hour, and when he left he took my hand and kissed it, telling me it’s so beautiful to see a young woman in love.
I never caught his name, but I’ll always remember him.” moolymoomoo
2. Her Generosity Went A Long Way To Make The Trip A Good One
“I was on a long late-night bus ride. It was express so it made very few stops. The bus had maybe 10 people on it in total. Halfway through the trip, it made a stop at a small-town station so people could grab a snack or use a public restroom and maybe stretch their legs.
I went up to the counter to buy what at that point was my dinner even though it was after 10 pm and when the cashier rang it up I passed a $50 bill to her and she told me that she couldn’t make the change. Defeated I went back to my seat on the bus.
As everyone piled on and the bus drove away, a lovely middle-aged lady walked up from her seat near the back and politely asked if I minded if she sat with me. I told her she was more than welcome. She sits and proceeds to unpack a small lunch bag.
She then split the entirety of her meal with me. She said she had been waiting for the washroom to clear out and had overheard what happened. She said: ‘I’ve gone hungry in my life and it sucks. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone, so you can share with me.’
When we were done I jokingly asked if she could break a $50 and we had a good laugh. She stuck with me for the remainder of the trip and was a very interesting lady besides being incredibly generous. I hope she is well.” Theearthhasnoedges
1. They Knew That In Disneyland, Magical Things Happen All The Time
“When I was at Disneyland a few years ago, a woman approached me out of the blue in the middle of Main St. and asked if I’d like to dance. I obliged her, and we spent the next few minutes chatting while her friends filmed us dancing.
It turns out it was her birthday and she was traversing the park on a birthday scavenger hunt, and one of the items on the list was to dance with a stranger. I wished her a happy birthday, we said our goodbyes and went our separate ways.
I never even got her name, but it still makes me smile when I think about it.” lazyfriction
Although some of these stories were truly touching, some strangers aren’t as kind. Always be aware of your surroundings and keep your phone charged at all times! Have you had a life-changing encounter with a stranger? Tell us your story!
