Acts of Kindness

These past few days, I've been biding my time by relaxing on the beach during the day and souvenir shopping at night. It's amazing how quickly my mindset has transformed from "work" to, well, nothing... and I've enjoyed every second of my vacation. Not only have I had time to read, swim, and soak up the sun's rays, but I've had time to contemplate life. Okay, so I realize that I'm sounding way too serious when I say this, but one thing that I've actually been thinking a lot about is how freaking nice people are here. No, I'm not joking. Locals will literally bend over backwards for you. Let me give you a few recent examples...

In Bangkok, we left our luggage in our friend's room in a hotel that we weren't even staying at. We then booked a taxi with the hotel, used their WiFi while we were waiting for our ride to the airport, and just hung out in the room that we didn't pay for. As Americans, our response to these accommodations was to give them 100 baht as a thank you for housing us for a couple of hours. Their response was insistent. "No, no, no. It was our pleasure!" We then thanked the hotel profusely, put the money back in our pocket, and promised to give the hostel glowing reviews on TripAdvisor. (We had to do something!)

At our hotel here in Ao Nang, the front desk leaves these little sweets that taste like Starbursts out. When we were checking in, they pushed the candy jar in front of us and told us to take one. Allow me to say that this particular candy has been very popular for us in Thaton during team meetings, movie nights, and midnight snacks that result in the loss of lizard limbs. Recognizing the sweets, I made a comment of something like, "Oh my gosh... I LOVE these!" Naturally, the owner of the hotel then gave us a handful to eat. Now, every time we walk back into the hotel from a day at the beach or a night of shopping, ALL of the employees here push the candy jar towards us, knowing how much we love the fruity treats.

Not only do they keep forcing the candy towards us, but they have clearly figured out that, as a group, we all have a sweet tooth. That's when Paiboon, one of the employees, decided to treat us to something sweet that's a bit healthier than the taffy-like substance that they've been giving us. Yes, he brought an entire trayful of mangosteen fruit to our room completely free of charge. We've greatly enjoyed this addition as breakfast for the past few days and I made the bold statement of saying that this act of kindness has allowed Paiboon to officially overtake Mr. Honey as my favorite Thai person (I'm so sorry, Mr. Honey! You had a good run!).

So now we have a lot of mangosteen AND a constant supply of candy! Because the candies seem like they're coming from a bottomless pit, I asked one of the employees how big the bags were that they used to fill the candy jar. He proceeds to go and get a huge, Costco-sized bag of candy and brings it up front for me. In awe, I said something like, "Wow! How much is that? I want to buy a bag so that my family and friends can try!" He laughed and told me that next time he was at the store, he would buy me one and I could pay him back.

I got a phone call in the room today and was told that I should go downstairs as soon as possible. Worried, I walk down the steps... only to find the owner holding out a big bag of candy for me. I asked him how much I owed him while pulling out my wallet, but he just stood there, shaking his head and hands with a big grin on his face saying, "No, no, no! A present for you!" I'm not sure if it's culturally appropriate or not, but I then gave him a big hug. I was just THAT excited!

So, I'm scratching my goal of making the Thai laugh and changing it to something that I can realistically change within myself. Just seeing the joy that these people have when they can do something nice, selfless, and thoughtful for complete strangers inspires me to want to "pay it forward"... but rather than making this a rare occurrence like most Americans, why can't I make it an everyday thing? Maybe if more of us treated each other like the Thai people treat other humans, the world would be a happier place. Today, I encourage you to take Meghan's Thai Act of Kindness Challenge: Do something completely selfless in order to make somebody else smile. (Then, be sure to share with me! If possible, I'd love to share some of these experiences on here in a few days!)

I'm excited to hear all of the simple acts of kindness and, more importantly, all of the joy that your selflessness is bound to spread. Good luck!