When so much of what we see online is sad, horrifying, or heartbreaking, running across a story like this one out of Longview, Texas gives you a sense of hope in the midst of the daily madness.

Recently, an East Texas woman shared how the unexpected act of heartfelt kindness from a stranger at Walmart can mean more than he may ever know.

I won't reveal her name out of respect for her privacy and especially since she posted in a closed online group. However, her story is one that may resonate with many. Even if the details aren't the same, we've all found ourselves waking up to heartbreak, grief, or even just feeling depressed about some aspect of what is going on in your life or even in the world at large.

 

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This woman lost her husband a little over a month ago. Anyone who has gone through the loss of someone dear to you knows how hard it can be just to do the daily basics.

She had gone to the Walmart on Gilmer Road in Longview. As grief can tend to do, it descended upon her to the point where she'd felt compelled to stop on a random aisle and just let the tears overtake her. She said it just hit her out of nowhere.

A man who'd been a stranger to her noticed she was crying and decided to go and check on her. It would have been so easy for him to just have pretended not to have seen her and go about his business. But he chose to engage and comfort this woman who was clearly suffering.

The impact his kindness had on this woman meant so much to her.

She shared online how much his kindness meant to her. And on top of that, this man's name was the same as her late husband's. She said even just THAT made her feel like, at least in some way, her husband was watching over her and that he'd sent this man to make sure she was okay.

I'm not sure we all fully realize how much of an impact our kindness can make on those around us. Whether you engage in a life-changing act or even just choose to smile at someone at the store--or anything in between--your decision to be kind when you "don't have to be" is one of the purest forms of goodwill we can ever show one another.

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