I made the mistake of reading this while PMS-ing a week or so ago...holy shit cryfest! It's a beautiful story though, for sure.

yay dooce!! top ten!! you're amazing!!

cryfest, for sure. but worth every tear.

That was absolutely lovely. You never know what's going to happen after the moment when you make a decision -- even if it's a decision as small as whether or not to go to the door and knock. It's a good reminder to be the person you want to be in every moment, not just the convenient ones.

I aspire to be like that cab driver.

My co workers must think I am crazy...sobbing at the computer. thanks hahaha

Ok, read it. Crying. Am sharing with my ninth grade students tomorrow, first thing.

must be some sort of traffic jam, 'cuz I keep trying, but it won't load up.

crying at my desk.

totally worth it.

In this time of economic turmoil it's nice to read something that isn't about bailouts, sub primes or the new "depression". Sometimes we forget that life should be about family, friends and helping others. A lovely story.

...had to stop reading this. intestines already jumbled, eyes too teary...not even halfway finished. the stories that you know how they end? the best and worst, those ones.

Even on my worst day, I could be someone's best hope. My motto. I'm a teacher too, and I might share this with my 6th graders.

What an amazing story. Really makes you stop and think. I truly appreciate this post. Amidst an election, stock market tumble and the everyday chaos of our world--that actually made time slow down for a moment.

i agree with "D" - it's a good lesson on how to be...

We should all get these moments in our lives more often. The simple act of grace and compassion, even if your life is wheeling out of control, is one of the most beautiful experiences you can have (or give).

I guarantee that good karma came back to that cab driver.

thanks for that -- it made me cry, but it made me happy. people are genuinely good, this just reinforces it.

Wow. It's nice to read about someone who is not afraid to stop their world to help someone else.

Wow. We should all be doing something so warm and generous for our elders. They need us as much as we need them. I know that woman wasn't my grandmother, but my thoughts are of my own grandma, living alone. Thanks for sharing.

I'm still misty. I've seen so many people from my family and church go through hospice, and while it's a great service, it's still so sad to know that the end is near. I've always praised the people that work in hospice, but I forget about the little saviors along the way that help get to that place. This was not only sweet, but a reminder that I need to be a better "me" and think about how I can make a small difference.
Thank you for the link.

Beautiful. "The door closing on a life" line was amazing. Thanks for this link today. Makes you think about what's important.

Thank you for posting the link. I'm sharing this beautiful story with everyone I know.

A beautiful story that makes me thankful that my grandmother had her whole famly with her when she went.

please delete number 41

We all stand the chance of being the little old lady. Will we take the opportunity to be the cab driver if it presents itself.

Another great post.............. Thanks

I've read that before but it meant more today. Two weeks ago, I lost my grandfather and I'm about to lose my grandmother. He was (and she will be) surrounded by family as he passed, but I always feel for people who aren't.

It's that thing of, one small thing, which may mean nothing to you, can change someone else's life.

I thought it was lovely.

I am not commenter #41.

I've seen this story before and it always brings a joyful tear to my eye. Thank you for reminding me that life's best moments are the small ones.

Wow!
Thanks for that Heather. I needed that.

Sigh.

so beautiful!
that man did his good dead for about 1000 days
x

Instant tears. That was really beautiful - thank you so much for sharing.

That broke my heart. Totally.

I've seen this story before, but it has as much of an impact the second time around as the first. It makes me think. . . if I spent a little less time focused on myself, and a little more time focused on the needs and struggles of others, how much more beauty and grace could I find in the world?

I have read this before, it is something that I think about often.

I love that you posted it.

Today was a good day for me to read it again.

May I become at all times, both now and forever
A protector for those without protection
A guide for those who have lost their way
A ship for those with oceans to cross
A bridge for those with rivers to cross
A sanctuary for those in danger
A lamp for those without light
A place of refuge for those who lack shelter
And a servant to all in need.

Wow. And Dooce/Heather, you are blessed for blessing us with it.

May we all live in the moment and learn to appreciate what really matters.

Thank you so much. I said my final goodbyes to my Mom on Saturday. I should have bucked the rules and taken her on a drive when we had the chance. Your post helped me get rid of some pent-up sorrow.

Thank you. I want to be a better person. A nicer person. A person who would do this kind of thing for someone else. Too often I'm too hurried, too judgmental, and too self absorbed to be present enough in the moment to be this kind to those around me.

MAAAAAAAAN...why aren't you posting about politics and making me righteously angry? don't you know that that's what i depend on you for?? ;)

now here i am, blubbering at work.
dangit.
*sniff*

it's the smallest and most insignificant moments we have that normally can change a life. be it ours or even someoneelse's. this was beautiful... tears ran down my face.

It is that one act of kindness that may change your life - and now that we've read this, many lives.

Thanks Heather - you have indeed changed lives.

-Lori

By the way, (I'm still loving that piece) but I'm pretty sure that when you announce complete economic collapse or the Rapture or WWIII, there will be people who take a moment to say Top Ten! Woo hoo!!!

Just chuckling. Hugs to all who may need one.

I think I have used this as a sermon illustration before . . . it is touching.

Thank you. I have had a horrible day and for some reason I just needed to read this and cry a little. Thank you for taking the time to post it. You're awesome.

I think I am newly pregnant, my hormones are a mess and I'm sobbing.
I worked in hospice for a year and it was beautiful :)

Good God that was beautiful. Father in Law just passed last week in a hospice situation, and I hope he got everything he wanted out of his last few weeks.

Now go see the movie "Ghost Town".......

What is that saying? "It is better to give than to receive"...makes an ordinary day a holiday....

Beautiful. We never know when we will be given the opportunity to minister to someone's need, or how ordinary the act may seem in the grand scheme of things.

This was a nice change from the politics.....

Thank you for that.
Thank you.

Why do people care about being in the top 10 so much? Methinks they need to get a life. No offense to you, of course.

Thanks for linking this, I hadn't seen it. It was beautiful.

OMG...so emotional...especially when I really think hard about how many elderly are out there, who never experience this type of kindness in their later years.

I'm gonna go cry now, and eat chocolate, and hug my family.

Wow - that's cool. Thanks for sharing. Its amazing how things seem to just click in life now and then.

damn, that stuff gets me every time. i'm sniffling covertly at my desk at work. great story. thanks.

Oh my god, that made me cry and cry.

And I'm pretty sure the fact that I'm all pregnant and hormonal wasn't even the half of it.

What a fabulous story.

Beautifully written. Thanks for directing our attention to it.
As a prostate cancer patient, I can affirm that looking death in the eye changes you, as it did this nice elderly woman. And, for those who are open to it, that new degree of sensitivity can change those around us, as it did the taxi driver.
I have written a book that chronicles some of the wonderful and some of the very funny moments I have had since cancer entered my previously-peaceful world. As a result, hundreds of readers who have allowed themselves to be touched by my story have communicated with me.
That human connection is so rare and so much appreciated.

Comedy Writer Jerry Perisho

"Unless you assume a God, the question of life's purpose is meaningless." - Bertrand Russell

Thanks for sharing.

I am going to a funeral this wk

My mother-in-law died of M.S. after suffering for 30yrs.
The last of which were confined to a bed, with a breathing and feeding tube, unable to communicate.

She was only 56.

This will only be the second funeral I've attended since the death of my husband at 32.
The long story is this is my deceased husbands, dad's wife.
He married her with M.S. carrying her to the chair she would sit in for their wedding.
Now he has to lay to rest his wife, after burying a son.

He is now faced at the age of 73 of being alone, after dedicating his life to taking care of her. He was her only living relative.

How blessed she was to have someone so dedicated and loving that she did not live alone.

I believe if we all have only one wish it is not to die alone.

Although this will be hard for everyone, I am going to do my best to remain positive, not to reflect on the sadness, but to celebrate the joy we all had in our lives and how blessed we are - not to die alone.

Am I the only one who thinks this piece reads like fiction? I'm not knocking the sentiment. It just sounds like a short story.

In the early stages of my aunt's Alzheimer's, she would often get confused or muddled while paying for something or ordering at a restaurant. When the clerks or wait staff were impatient, it would make a fragile woman feel that much worse. When they were patient and kind, we called them her angels in disguise. They had no idea how their small acts of kindness made all the difference in the world. I try to remember that every day with every person I encounter (often failing miserably). Everyone has a story.

If we took more time to pay attention to people around us, I think we could change lives more than any election ever could....

How sweet.

She deserved to have her memories revisted. She earned them.

Cheers!

Thank you!

That is absolutely amazing and heart touching. I wish more people thought and acted like that in todays world. I try my hardest to everyday, because of stories like this. You just never know when you will encounter an amazing moment.

Links like these are why I read blogs.
I aspire to parent like this man drove that day.

Thanks Heather for the link! Made my day for sure - feel a need to write something profound, but I've got nothing to add to that.

We should all aspire to be so kind. That is our purpose. Thank you for sharing such a lovely story.

that was beautiful. nice to be reminded that there is some kindness and humanity left in the world.

sad yet a nice reminder of my nana - thanks for sharing.

"We’re conditioned to think that our lives revolve around great moments. But great moments often catch us unaware - beautifully wrapped in what others may consider a small one."

My most important moment was holding my infant son, Brendan, as he died. It was so quiet. There was no struggling. There was no pain. And I didn't cry then because I wanted his last moments to be those of comfort and peace and love. I hope he felt that.

Holding him for those minutes was absolutely the most important thing I have ever done, and quite possibly is the most important thing that I ever will do. And as painful as it was I wouldn't give those moments up for anything.

tears. thanks for something so real and touching in a time of such ugliness.

I thought it was an okay story with a fantastic message. However, I would have loved to have seen more detail in the story. I mean, the narrator sets it up with this notion of his cab as a confessional, then the woman remains silent throughout the cab ride only pointing out that this place is special and that place is special, but she gives no dialogue of her own to explain why these places are special or what, if any, memories she has of those old places.

Ah well... It was nice, but it needs more.

Sorry for being so cold.

as a pediatric icu and oncology nurse, i deal with life and death moments every day. while i know that i am often involved in some of the most difficult of all possible days in the lives of many families, its also opened me to some of the most beautiful of all human experiences--a parent helping me bathe a child, a teenage friend sitting for hours talking to their comatose friend as if nothing had changed, a grandmother wheeling an empty child-sized wheelchair to be donated to those in need after the death of her young grandson. i very much agree that "great moments often catch us unaware - beautifully wrapped in what others may consider a small one." such moments are open for our taking, if only we make ourselves aware of their presence in our own lives.

a beautiful story, indeed.

If you like Nerburn then by all means read his books. My favorites are "Neither Wolf Nor Dog" and "Chief Joseph and The Flight of The Nez Perce"

Kudos to Her Heatherness for covering this amazing author!

Thank you for sharing.
The way it made me feel brought me back to my childhood. When I was a little girl I used to cry when I saw little old ladies alone in church, at restaurants, or out shopping...
That thread continues throughout my life as I struggle with the fear of being alone.

Thanks. Your post just put today's news into perspective for me. My husband and I just lost our entire retirement fund today, but this smacked me upside the head. There are way more important things than ... well, than things.

Great story. Thanks for sharing it with those of us who might not have found it on our own.

Thank you for posting that.

I always have believed that this world would be a better place if everyone was kinder than necessary. Everyone you meet is fighting some sort of battle.

Beautiful story.
Life is made up of those unexpected moments. It's a pity not everyone is willing to go out of their way for someone else, even just for a moment. We'd all be happier if we did.

I've said it before and I'll say it again: the great injustice this world has suffered because of the advent of cell phones is the loss of frequent cabbie-passenger communication.

Cabbies used to be good for at least one near-life-changing conversation a week. Now it's rare to find one who will even speak to you because they're always on the phone. I say in all sincerity that it's been a real loss in my life, and there's nothing I can do about it.

I hate to be so cynical, but I kept wondering--did this really happen? Or did he invent it? It sounds almost too literary, every detail too perfect. But I suppose it almost doesn't matter, since the effect is so powerful. Still, I wonder.

Thanks for sharing that Heather. It's all about those little moments that make this life worth living.

So sweet of him to take the time with the old woman. I try to be especially pleasant and helpful to the older people I see walking along the street, or in my apartment building.

I love old people, and can't believe sometimes how they are ignored. Let's all try to reach out to an elderly stranger in the next week!

I cried. Yes I did. I cried because that type of kindness gets me EVERY TIME.

It is those sorts of moments, you know...those instances when one human makes a decision to be kind to another human being...those are the moments that matter. So many of us have to stop and and make a conscious decision to behave that way. Wouldn't it be wonderful if we tried to make it a habit?

Thanks for sharing the link...that was wonderful. :-)

What a beautiful man that cab driver is.
Thank you for sharing his story.

This story is so touching because we can so easily find ourselves in either role...if I was the woman, I would be so grateful to find a helper like the driver. And how many times have I unwittingly found myself in the driver's shoes?

And how many times did I make the right, more patient choice? Fewer times than I'd like to think, I'd guess...

Thanks for sharing. This is a fabulous story.

I'm glad this touched so many people and warmed their day and all, but I'm afraid I'm with "Dan."

Wow. What bad writing.

Your writing is better than this dude's, Heather.

That's not kissing your ass. It's just true.

Let's all do this. OK? World's problems solved. Period.

I don't comment often, but I do want to thank you for this.

Once, when I was sixteen and waitressing, a very old man tipped me $20 for a cup of coffee. He said it was because I was the only person that had smiled at him all day; and he left before I could give the money back. "Thanks" would have been just fine, but I'm sure I spent the money on Echo and the Bunnymen tickets or something silly. I used to think of him every day for a while after that, and I realize I'd forgotten him for years. Since I'm not a naturally smiley person, sometimes the best I can do these days is just to remember my good manners. Now, thirtymumble years later, I've just been reminded of him. Sincerely, thanks.

Heather,

Thank you so much for sharing this. While it made me cry, it was just what I needed. Since I started back to school I have been so wrapped up in my own world writting papers, studying or doing other random things for school and have not been the best at keeping in touch with the people that mean the most to me.

I am glad I stopped and took the time to come and read the blog today, but I have to go I have some emails and phone calls to make.

April

PS. I just helped an elderly stranger...as I propositioned to all of you (it was a 'wrong number' and I helped her find the right number for Meals on Wheels). It took some extra effort, and I'm so glad I did it.

Stopped by your blog looking for a laugh but instead I got a much-needed cry. At a time when the news cycles are consumed with politics and money, it's refreshing and important to take a moment to think about small people and small moments, about human decency and grandma.

It reminds me of the last narration at the end of 'American Beauty' when Lester says, "...and I can't feel anything but gratitude for every single moment of my stupid little life... You have no idea what I'm talking about, I'm sure. But don't worry... you will someday."

Our lives are made up of little moments that are often overlooked because they aren't the monumental, earth-shattering or orgasmic explosions. But the smile of a child or the hug of a parent or just the littlest kindness of a stranger (like when the policeman lets you off without a speeding ticket you really deserved) can color how you treat the next person and how they treat the next.

I do believe this is wonderful and a gift given to a stranger. I feel that many times we just as easily overlook those we know or even those we say we love.

It is a wonderful story to share and hope that it opens peoples eyes and hearts to those nearby who might need some care...

Love to all

Heather,
This has reminded me of so many things. Of when my grandmother died, and then my grandfather. When one of my good friends lost her father to lung cancer a couple of years ago (and is now in the process of dealing with her mother's progressive lymphoma). Of the close friend my mother lost to lung cancer. Of my former downstairs neighbor, who died a few days ago in a car accident (I didn't know her well, but I also never introduced myself and never really said much to her). Of when my father-in-law's mother died, then my mother-in-law's mother, then my mother-in-law's father (and my husband was unable to say goodbye or attend any of the funerals since they live 1600 miles away). I am reminded that a friend of mine was recently diagnosed with epilepsy. I am reminded that life is so very short and that we all have so many people that are important to us in one way or the other.

I am reminded, too, of another story. I don't remember it exactly so repeating it verbatim is out of the question, but I remember the gist of it.

A young man who had just moved to the area was walking home from high school. He had spent all of his first week at his new school being bullied and beat up. Life at home was not much better; his parents were in the middle of a brutal divorce and custody battle, and neither parent was particularly excited about being the sole caretaker of a teenager. He felt unneeded, unwanted, and quite unloved. On his way home one afternoon, one of the many antagonists in his