PF Weekly grab a brew #33: Kindness from a stranger
Would You Do The Right Thing?
I’d like to think that there are good people still in this world and I am one of them. There is nothing wrong with coming in second or third or not at all as long as you play the game right. We fear failure but when we see a way to buck the system we jump on it and for many with no guilt or after-thought.
I can’t say that I’ve stumbled upon anything more than some loose change on the ground in a parking lot but you can bet if I found something that wasn’t mine I’d do my best to get it back to its rightful owner. My luck seems to be finding pets and  well, you can bet I’ll be do my best to get them home. So where are all these good people then? There are amongst us and although not everyone wants their good deeds broadcast to the world every so often something spectacular like this happens.
Finding money
One of those good people, Paul Williams of Sacramento who works at Wal-Mart did the right thing. He was on his way home and ready to catch the bus when he spotted a walled in a shopping cart. He was surprised when he opened it up to find $4000 inside including a cheque for $1000 and no identification. He brought the wallet home and called in to the store to let them know what he had found. That is when a less than hopeful Lynne Andries returned to the store not thinking she would see a penny of her money. To her surprise she received just the opposite, every penny back and a some new friends, Paul and Debra Williams.
It’s stories like these that make my days brighter especially when it is a stranger who simply wants to do the right thing. We watch or listen to the news media every day and most often it is the darkness of the world that garners the most attention. Most often we are more entangled with what’s happening in the lives of the rich and famous and those that are including themselves in the line-up of illegal activity.
I just wanted to show that there are still good people in this world who do the right thing and to let them see it’s ok. – Paul Williams
Slow down
This is a great example of why we need to slow down and not always multi-task or think of a million things at the same time when we are completing a task, as tempting as it is. Lynn was in a rush and nearly lost the money to put down on her second mortgage had her money not landed in the hands of someone who cared how the person who lost the money would feel.
So, today I ask all of you to slow down a bit and take a look around you. Don’t be in a rush to get where you need to get and take a few extra minutes if you need to so you are on time and not rushing to get the job done.
You can watch the news story here.Â
Have you ever found money or an item before that didn’t belong to you? How did you handle the situation and how did it turn out?
Top Recipe
You know before I let you get on with my weekly reading line-up I must share a treat with all of you. When Erica’s recipes posted her Kahlua Toffee Cheesecake on my Foodie Facebook Page The Free Recipe Depot this week, I knew this was going to be the TOP RECIPE PICK for the week at Canadian Budget Binder. Congratulations Erica, well done with this recipe.
PF weekly reading line-Up
What a great week I had for reading blog posts from my amazing personal finance friends. There’s not a day that goes by where I don’t learn something new. Without continuous improvement and education we let life pass us by.
Take some time out today to read a few or all of these amazing blog posts below. Many of these bloggers I showcase here at CBB because their writing style is one that I connect with and hope you that you will to.
Top story: The Gift of Time- Planting Our PenniesÂ
What a great story of a family that came together to get the job done.Building a house from the ground up, the gardening, preserving, flea markets etc. Times have sure changed but in many ways we still do the same things. My time is valuable to me and to be honest I do think about where I spend my time. I’ve done lots of thinking lately. I can’t think of any one time in my life where time was the best time that I spent as I try to make the most of every day, every event, every memory.
- Pay off your mortgage faster save thousands of dollars– Making Sense of Cents
- 6 Money saving tips that really stink- Eyes on the Dollar
- The duties of an executor: an executors checklist– Retire Happy
- Make money with your garden– Make Money Your Way
- Paying off debt to re-wire your financial mindset- The Frugal Farmer
- July 2013 Dividend Update– My Own Advisor (Mark is well on his way.. check this out!)
- The dreaded insufficient funds– My Alternate Life
- How much should you spend on office clothes?- Mo Money Mo Houses
- Crap I gave up to get out of debt- Staying on budget
- How our pension will change over time – The Brighter Life
- 3 years of blogging from our Canadian friends at Boomer and Echo... check em out!
- 8 things you forgot to be grateful for – Marc and Angel
Have a great week everyone and I hope you enjoyed this edition of my Personal Finance Weekly Grab a Brew #33 Kindness From A Stranger . Join me again next Friday when I do it all over again.
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- PF Weekly Grab A Brew #26: School is out for summer (canadianbudgetbinder.com)
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My dear friend, between the heart-warming story of the Walmart employee, the much needed message to slow down, and the Kahlua Toffee Cheesecake, you have me here with tears in my eyes. Thanks, Mr. CBB. You two enjoy your weekend. 🙂
You as well Laurie. There are good people in this world.
I would have definitely returned it too. I wold feel so guilty if I didn’t. But it does bring up the question: why on earth would your carry 4k in you wallet??? That’s just asking for trouble! That being said, it’s always nice to hear stories of people being kind to each other!
I agree, do what you need to do with the money FIRST then go shopping.
$4k is a bundle to have in a wallet, let alone find it!
Nice gesture for sure, there are good people out there….
Thanks for the mention, have a great weekend!
Mark
Thanks for all the great stories and recipes! I love reading and appreciate being included in your reading line up this week! What an honor! Enjoy your coffee and have a great weekend.
I found a super cute umbrella on the bus the other day. I get off at the last stop so I wasn’t really paying attention to the people around me until it was my time to get off the bus. When I brought the umbrella to the bus driver he seemed surprised I was turning it it (it was one of those nice umbrellas with the wooden duck heads-not sure of the brand). I told him I hoped the owner would call lost and found. He just laughed at me like he thought I was crazy to think that the owner would actually try to retrieve it. Could I have kept it? Sure. Would anybody know the difference? Nope. Would that have been right? No!
You could have but I’m sure he/she may call the terminal to see if anyone found it on the bus. That is all we hace to do here. I’m sure he laughs because anything left on the bus is ususally scooped up and taken away by someone. There are not many people that are honest but those that are will live life knowing they did the right thing. Cheers
$4000 is a lot of cash. Lynne is a lucky lady and Mr. Williams a very honest man.
One of my favorite things, and perhaps the only appropriate thing, I tell myself is Never Be in a Rush. Even if I am to move swiftly, I must not be rushed. Sounds stupid, works well.
Have a bonzer weekend, man!
nah, doesn’t sound stupid at all mat…. bonze out yourself!!
That cheesecake looks sinfully good..
I know.
Lots of good reading again this week!!! The recipe looks yummy!!!! As for the story, yes I would turn something like that in and have before. WE picked up a wallet and a bunch of cards ages ago in a Canadian Tire parking lot. It looked like the wallet had fallen out of someone’s purse as she got out of the van as everything was on the ground beside the van. We took it all into the store and just as hubby was dropping it off inside the lady came up to the van looking for the stuff. I told her what we had found and picked up and told her hubby had just taken it into the store. She was very happy to hear that which was thanks enough in my books….
I’m sure she was over the moon that someone had brought it in rather than take it. You are good people Christine. Keep smiling.
that toffee cheesecake looks amazing. I have been trying to get good butter and cream to cook cakes but pretty disappointing so far, I guess it will have to wait until a trip abroad.
As for the story, I’d like to say I would be the better person too but I am not sure I would be THAT good, that’s a ton of cash! thanks for the mention!
I used to work at a theatre years ago and we found money ALL THE TIME. I’d try to put them in a little envelope with the time and title of what the film was, in case anybody came back. But they never did. We had a “finders-keepers” if nobody came for it within a week. The most I ever got was $20 though.
I don’t think I’ve ever found anything of value, but someone did find my husband’s cell phone on a bike trail. They looked through the contacts and called Mom, who told them how to find us. I really appreciated that they took the time to find us. Thanks for including me in your list. Have a great weekend.
Great post Mr. CBB. Thanks for sharing that positive story and all the good reading too.
Thanks for sharing Mama PoP’s first post! She’ll be so excited to hear about it. =)
You’re Welcome, it was a great post.
It’s always nice to finish the week on a high note… thanks Mr CBB!
A few years back, my son was working at the Husky truck stop in Niagara-on-the-Lake, and went into the washroom to find an envelope with $1500 cash inside. He took it to the manager and it was locked into the safe. A week later the trucker came by on his way back west, and claimed the money. He left $10 for my son, who commented that it would have been nice if it was more, but he would do the same thing again! I was very proud of him as an ever-needy teenager. To know that my son was becoming an honest man was priceless to me. 20 years later I am still proud of him and his moral approach to life.
Thank you so much for sharing that about your son. There are not many people who would step up and do the right thing. He will forever remember the kindness of that day.
🙂 thanks for the mention!
You’re welcome… we all want your cheesecake Erica!
That’s a really cool story Mr. CBB! I would like to think that I would do the same thing as well. Not only is it the right thing to do, but you never know what it means to the person who lost it. On a different note, can you send me a piece of that cheesecake through the interwebs? 😉
No kidding the moment she posted it on my page at the The Free Recipe Depot I knew that was the one!!