Like Richard usually did in his everyday routine, he was on his way home to have lunch quickly. However, the day turned out to be different for him. He noticed a man old enough not to be physically active standing at the corner of San Marino Drive and Lake San Marcos. He stood leaning on his walker and seemed to be asking for a lift.
Although Richard had already driven a bit further, he did not feel like moving away, thinking there could be an emergency. Thus, in the next few seconds, he decided to pull over to check if he could do something for the man, so he took a U-turn. Upon being asked, the man told Richard how he wanted to visit the 99-cent store that was not too far, but a car ride was required. The store was approximately 1.5 miles away, so Richard drove there.
He first got off and helped him onto the curb. Then he parked his car and sanitized everything from the car seats and dashboards to the handles. He also gave the man gloves and a mask and requested that he sanitize his hands before they drove off to the store. Although the ride was short, they had a conversation through which Richard learned about him. He was a 93-year-old man, Mike, happily married to his wife Doris, who is 94.
Listening to the man, telling this with so much love, Richard found it adorable. Richard then continued to ask the man if his wife knew he was out, to which he replied with a big no, so Richard asked for the reason. Hearing Mike’s answer to his question made Richard overjoyed.
Mike shared how Doris and he shared a Hershey’s bar every night, so he had to get 35 chocolate bars from the store.
Although Richard had made other assumptions, he was still delighted to drive off to the store Mike wanted to visit; thus, once they reached the store, they picked up enough chocolates, and Richard dropped him off at home. When they went, Richard asked Mike to tell Doris where the chocolates came from, to which Mike said: ‘I’ll just say a nice real estate guy gave me a ride.’
It was enough to make Richard happy, and although this was not a big favour, making Mike happy made Richard’s day a hundred percent better.
Moreover, Richard also told Mike not to wait to get a ride the next time and gave him his card. He told Mike he was always a call away and wished to meet Doris someday. Although it might not have been a big act for Richard, it was just a few minutes of his day when he helped someone buy chocolates for his 94-year-old sweetheart. This is the beauty of kindness and a reminder that true love still exists!
