Make Other Smile by "PIF"

Hi there,
 
Here is my story and how I live everyday… I was a single mom raising my son on my own, struggling and just getting by… we didn’t have much and counted on support from our local community and churches to barely get by… I had the pleasure of reading the book then eventually seeing the movie “pay it forward” and thought to myself… this is how it should be… needless to say, I started to pay it forward any chance I could from free babysitting for neighbors who couldn’t afford a sitter, to cooking for sick friends… what little I could do I did… trying to pay it forward for the help I was getting from strangers.
 
That was about 8 years ago… I am a successful Director of Nursing/ Branch manager in the Houston area now… I still have the opportunity to pay it forward every chance I can and my most recent experience was with one of my employees… she too is now a single mom with a young child and just getting by… she recently saved enough money to get her own apartment but had no furnishings or necessary items we all need to live on our own… how I remember those days of struggling… I cleaned out my house and gave her all the extra linens, kitchen items, furniture, a car that was just sitting in our driveway needing some minor repair but a lot more reliable than her present one… I think I received the biggest hug I have ever gotten from it and was happy to do it… the minute she said she would pay me back I told her no you won’t! “Pay it forward” everyday you can…
 
This last week we had a major hurricane and most of my homebound patients were without electricity for sometime…. She walked into my office and told me “I am paying it forward”. I was overjoyed she was able to feel that sense of fulfillment I do every time I pay it forward. She made about 20 hot plates of food and delivered them to our patients who have been living on MRE’s and cold items for a week along with water and some basic items that they may have been running out of (toilet paper, bread, PBJ, etc…). She also said that she has a friend in the same situation as she is and she is giving her free babysitting as well…The smile on her face said it all and she told me she will always be thankful for the help I gave her and will always pay it forward.
 
Sincerely,
 
Anonymous