The Kindness of Strangers by Derek

The Kindness of Strangers by Derek - October 2013 Scholarship Essay

As dawn began to shed light upon Wichita, a school bus carrying my classmates and I swerved out from the Northeast High School parking lot. It’s destination was the local zoo, and coats were present on every body in the bus except for mine. That morning at 5:30, I woke up half-asleep and decided to throw on shorts and a t-shirt. This was a grave mistake according to the temperature gauge outside of my house which read 42 degrees Fahrenheit, and I soon realized this after I stepped outside to catch my bus. The conditions were perfect for contracting pneumonia, and I might have if it wasn't for a person that I would run into later that day.
When we arrived at the zoo, my cheeks already showed a rosy-red hue while my fingers displayed a touch of blue. It was hard to imagine that the zoo animals would be foolish enough to take a single step outside of their den today, but then again they had plenty of fur keeping them insulated. At that moment I desired to have fur, but I knew it was a vacuous thought so I began to stroll down zoo boulevard with the chill nipping at my bare ears. The fun day was beginning to turn into quite the opposite, twenty minutes began to feel like twenty hours. When I didn't think that I could withstand the cold any longer, I then noticed a figure walking in the distance.
The figure in the distance was a JROTC officer, who had a reputation of being very strict and cruel. It was obvious that I was not in JROTC, so I expected worse from this intimidating individual, but I still squeaked out “Good morning sir.”. To my surprise he said, “Morning boss. Hey could I ask you a favor? I’m trying to get rid of some of these JROTC sweaters, could you take one off of my hands?”. Boy was I shocked, but I graciously accepted and put on the sweater. The warmth of the sweater overcame the icy weather of the zoo and I went on to enjoy my day. I didn't think much of it, I thought that maybe he was just trying to get me to join JROTC. A couple of hours later as I was pondering the thought, it began to rain and grow colder. Immediately, I stuffed my freezing hands into my pockets, when the same JROTC instructor came up behind me with two cups of hot chocolate in his hand. He said, “Hey boss can I ask you for another favor? I accidentally paid for two cups of hot chocolate, would you mind taking one off of my hands?”. I felt pitiful, but as cold as I was I took the hot chocolate and insisted that I pay him back. He refused and said, “I don’t want any money, I just want you to repay the favor by doing something nice for another person.”. Although it might sound corny, it really did touch my heart in a way. I thanked him a second time and told him that I will remember to do so.
What if everybody was kind to each other regardless of circumstances and if they are strangers or not? My brain wrapped around this idea and the more I thought about it, the more I started to smile. The next day I visited an arcade with a couple of my friends and I hit the ticket-jackpot on a game. Then, I noticed a kid who was wearing a hat that made it obvious that it was his birthday. He was desperately playing game after game, battling the system and trying to win tickets, but luck was not with him and a sad expression grew across his face. I walked up to him and gave him my tickets, his face immediately brightened, and I know it sounds cliché but it really felt good to do good. Afterwards I began to do more community service because now I carry the message, “Do something kind for the sake of others.”
Helping others out not makes them happy but it can give you a sense of satisfaction of making the world a better place one step at a time. Just think of what could happen if we lived in a world filled with giving instead of receiving. If you stand around waiting to receive what you think you deserve, you won’t get anything while if you give instead of receiving, you’ll end up receiving much more in return. That JROTC instructor taught me a life lesson that I will never forgot. I will always remember to be kind to strangers.