You are the hero; noble, quiet and unassuming.

What you do matters. It’s the little things; I notice, someone notices, it matters.

I see you let the little old lady cross the road, before you go, not so much that it’s the law, but you know that your car sitting there, in the street, is blocking a speeding car from doing the unthinkable.

I see you being careful to give the proper change back to the clerk who accidentally gave you an extra $20. It matters that you smiled at the man of a different race, even though you’re in ‘his’ neighborhood. It matters that you held the door open just a moment longer, to let Mom and her kids in. She may have been too busy to smile, but it’s there nonetheless.

I know that you gave the lady at the checkout counter the extra .25 cents she needed to buy a bottle of water. She mentioned your kindness to her family, but was too embarrassed to thank you.

The $1 that you gave the guy at the gas station, who made up some story about running out of gas, and forgot his wallet, you knew it was a scam but gave him a dollar anyway.

I watched you jump-start a stranger’s car, when no one else was around to help. I know you reduced the price of your best selling product, because you knew you were overcharging.

The stray dog you rescued is doing fine, and loves you for your kindness. It matters that you stopped to talk to the lonely girl who was clearly troubled by life.

You are the soul of us, our heartbeat, the one that carries on despite bad news, and trust issues.

I hope it never occurs to you that the world has changed. That many, if not most, people care about themselves first. It happens when a society becomes too crowded and overburdened. When we work ourselves to the bone, not to get ahead, but to survive. It never seems to bother you. I suspect that you don’t know, or you have somehow moved above the fray, as if you know something that we don’t, as if you are in some world other than ours and we are but a dream.

I am ashamed of where we have gone, and what we have become, and then I see you; a shinning light. You’ve got the old school personal integrity; noble, quiet and unassuming. No ego, no memory, and no pretense.

I see you and appreciate you. You are loved for all that you do.

Your friend,

Steve