An Act of Kindness by Tessa

An Act of Kindness by Tessa - October 2013 Scholarship Essay

As a small-town Wisconsin girl, exposure to different cultures and languages is rare. You can imagine the culture shock I went through while walking down Venice Beach and the streets of Los Angeles, California, last summer. So many people, so many cultures, so many languages! I had never been exposed to this variety of customs. At the time I was actually very frightened; however, one experience in particular changed my mind forever.

I was sitting in my terminal at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) when an elderly lady sat down next to me. I smiled at her and then proceeded to sit there awkwardly and frightened that I was sitting so close to someone I had never met. Shortly after, the lady turned to me and began to speak. She spoke to me in a language I could not understand and I began to feel sad for her and frustrated with myself because of my inability to understand. She simply wanted to communicate, and neither of us could understand each other. Her last phrase to me sounded like a question, to which I responded, "I'm sorry, I don't understand" in English, hoping that maybe she could understand me more than I could understand her. She then proceeded to take her sweater from her carry-on and wraps it around me. At that moment, even with the language barrier, I realized that her actions expressed concern for me: concern that I was terribly cold in my shorts and T-shirt.

This woman taught me that there are a lot of caring people in this world, and its nice to see that care firsthand. She also taught me the importance of communication, language studies, and acceptance of other cultures. I know the importance of communication and acceptance is taught in schools; however, many times that importance isn't realized until exposure occurs. Finally, I learned that even though language can be a barrier at times, smiles and other small acts of kindness are universal. My entire experience could not be learned in a classroom; only in the real world could I have ever been exposed to such an experience.