Random acts of kindness

Jodie had lived in Silver Lake her entire life. She loved this sleepy little town, nestled in the hills of the Canadian Shield. The town had been built by the pioneers, lumberjacks mostly, who had left traces of their handiwork in some of the century’s old wooden houses that were dotted around Silver Lake. The town encircled a large lake by the same name, with many bays connected to smaller lakes by meandering creeks. The lake was dotted with many islands, some of which were inhabited, but only in the summer, acting as small fishing cottages that could be rented out.

Jodie knew everyone in town, not that there were that many. She had gone to school with them, had celebrated many holidays with them, had volunteered at fundraisers and community gatherings with all of them. It was very useful for her job to know everyone around town, for she was in charge of delivering the post. She did that, not because she needed the money, her parents had left her the house and a large inheritance after they passed away many years ago. She did it for the social interactions she had with her neighbours and friends. She loved going to Maeve Williams’s house to chat over a cup of tea when she was doing her rounds. She loved seeing Bradley, the Finley’s affectionate golden retriever who got all excited every time she would stop by with the mail. This town was her home, her lifeblood, and she could never picture herself living anywhere else.

As she sipped her first cup of coffee and sat down at her breakfast table, she reached for the town’s weekly newsletter.

The Mysterious Benefactor Strikes Again!

Simon Lassiter received a mysterious package, Friday morning, from our resident do-gooder...

Jodie laughed at the title of the first article. In the past few months, people in the community had received packages wrapped in the same delicate brown paper, tied with white string. She was the one to deliver them every time and had come to recognize the mysterious packages with no return address. They always contained just what the people needed at that moment.

There were so many theories as to the identity of the “mysterious benefactor” in the article, most of which seemed very implausible. For Jodie, the identity of this person doing these random acts of kindness was of little consequence. She was just so happy for those fortunate enough to receive them.

The first person to receive a package, she recalled, was Sally Donovan, Jodie’s next door neighbour. Sally had had a bad fall, breaking her leg when she slipped on the icy front steps of her home. The break was bad enough that she was bedridden for a few weeks. The package she received contained her favorite candies, crossword books, a puzzle and various other things to cheer her up and give her something to do during her convalescence.

The next people to benefit were the Masons. They’d had a fire in their home that caused some major damage. They received a gift certificate for the tools and materials they would need, as well as a gift certificate from a furniture store, to replace the ones they had lost.

The most touching one for Jodie had been the delivery of two parcels to the Turners a week before Christmas. The family of four were struggling to make ends meet and would otherwise have been unable to celebrate the holidays last year. The anonymous donor had given them canned goods, dry foods so they could have a nice holiday dinner and have enough food to last them for a while. There were also some clothes for the children and two gifts already wrapped for each child to open on Christmas Day. Olivia, who had attended school with Judie, was so overwhelmed by the generosity that she had tears in her eyes. She had been so worried about letting the children down by not celebrating the holidays like they used to. Judie had been moved to tears as well. That day, she had made a promise to herself to check in on the family more often and bring something with her every time to help them get back on their feet. Jack had since found better employment with the help of the community and the family was prospering.

There were so many others that had received gifts from the secret helper, Jodie thought, as she finished reading the article. Not only did it benefit different members of the community, it brought everyone closer. It encouraged more people to help their neighbours.

Jodie set the newsletter down and got ready for work. She fixed her long blonde hair in her usual braid and got dressed. She didn’t bother putting on any makeup, she had perfect alabaster skin and didn’t feel the need to cake her face in layers of products. The only exception to that rule was a little bit of lip gloss that she applied to her lips. With on last look in the mirror, she headed to work, just a short walk away.

She started by sorting the letters and packages in her small office right in the center of town. She smiled when she picked up a box wrapped in brown paper tied with white string. It was addressed to Maeve Williams. Jodie was so excited to deliver this parcel of well wishes to her friend and mentor. Maeve had taught most of the residents of Silver Lake, having retired from teaching at the local primary school only five years ago. Regrettably, she had lost her husband a year ago and was having a hard time adjusting to her new life without George. She didn’t get out of her house as often as she used to. Maeve had once been in charge of several organizing committees and now she rarely attended town events. Maybe this gift would help her to see that the town was there for her just as she had been there for everyone else for so many years.

Jodie intentionally kept the brown paper package for last. She was so excited to see her friend’s reaction. She finally made it to Maeve’s white clad bungalow. Some spring flowers were starting to open up in the garden, like the beautiful red tulips that matched the colour of the front door. Maeve was sitting on her front porch drinking tea. She put her cup down as soon as she saw Judie and smiled at her.

“Good afternoon dear”, she said, finally taking notice of the box in Judie’s hand.

“I have a special delivery today”, Judie said.

“I can see that. You can put it down on the table just here”, she said motioning for her friend to take a seat once she had deposited the parcel.

“How very mysterious! I wonder what this could possibly be”, Maeve exclaimed.

“Why don’t you open it and find out.”

Judie helped her friend untie the string and remove the brown paper covering the box. Maeve slowly opened the box and started pulling out one item at a time. The first was a ball of wool with knitting needles. Maeve was one of the founding members of the knitting club that met at the community center once a week. She hadn’t been back since George passed.

“Now you have to come back to the knitting club.”

“I suppose it’s been a long time, hasn’t it?”

Judie shook her head in agreement. The next item was a calendar with all of the town’s events written down. Maeve smirked. It was finally starting to dawn on her that the anonymous benefactor was trying to get her out of the house more.

The last item was a framed photograph. Maeve held it to her heart, tears springing from her eyes. She finally lowered the frame so that Judie could see the photograph of George and Maeve at the last town event they had attended, the Easter egg hunt. They were laughing in the photograph, looking at one another. You could see the love in their eyes.

“Thank you”, Maeve said, turning her attention to Judie.

“I just…”

Maeve interrupted her before she could say that she was only the one that had delivered the package.

“It has been many years since I taught you, but I didn’t forget your handwriting”, she said with a warm smile. “Your parents would be so proud to know that this is how you chose to spend your inheritance.”

Judie hugged her friend, feeling so happy and proud of what she had accomplished. She didn’t mind being unmasked by the woman who had helped her so much over the years.

“I won’t tell. It’s is your decision to remain anonymous or not. But I will say that you should be recognized for the amazing young woman you have become.”

That was all the praise Judie needed to push her to keep going. She would have to think on whether or not she wanted her identity as the mysterious sender to become public knowledge. Perhaps someday she would tell the residents of Silver Lake that she had done these small acts of kindness as a way to honour her parent’s memory. But for now, she would enjoy sharing happy memories of George with her friend over a cup of tea and start planning for the next brown paper package she would send.