A poor older man is unexpectedly rewarded for the kindness he showed to a stranger when he steps out of his house one morning and finds a brand new sports car instead of his old one.<\/p>\n
80-year-old Gregory Smith stood on his front porch, dumbfounded. He pinched himself twice to ensure he wasn\u2019t dreaming and called out to his wife, Cynthia, as he stared at the contents of the envelope in his hand and then at the gleaming sports car in front of his house.<\/p>\n
\u201cCynthia! Cynthia! Come here quickly!\u201d he shouted, his hands trembling with anxiety at the sight of the new car and his old one gone.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s the matter with you, Gregory?\u201d Cynthia emerged from inside, drying her hands on a towel and frowning. \u201cI burnt the pancake because of you! If you don\u2019t know, we were down to our last packet of pancake mix! And you\u2019re just standing here? When are you planning on going to the grocery store?\u201d<\/p>\n
Gregory waved his hand dismissively. \u201cLook at this, Cynthia,\u201d he said, showing her the envelope he had found on their front porch. \u201cThere were car keys inside the envelope and our old car is gone! Look over there,\u201d he added, pointing outdoors where he had parked his old car last night. \u201cThat\u2019s a brand new car! Who could have done this? What should I do now?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd there\u2019s no note inside or anything indicating who sent this?\u201d Cynthia asked, confused.<\/p>\n
\u201cI already double-checked the envelope. There is none! What do we\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n
Before Gregory could finish his sentence, the honk of a car cut him off. When he looked out of the front door, he saw his old car parked in front of his house and a man stepping out of it.<\/p>\n
Gregory\u2019s eyes teared when he saw who the man was. \u201cOh my goodness! He kept his promise, Cynthia!\u201d he said, turning to face her. Cynthia was smiling as if she knew this was going to happen.<\/p>\n
The man gave Gregory a warm hug. \u201cHow have you been, Gregory? It\u2019s been some time, hasn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJack? Oh, I can\u2019t believe this\u2026I\u2019m quite good, dear. How are you? And please tell me you did not do this!\u201d he cried, hugging him back.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had to, Gregory. After what you did for me\u2026I mean, who shows such kindness these days? And you can\u2019t blame me for it completely. Mrs. Smith helped me carry out the plan\u2026.\u201d he said, smiling.<\/p>\n
\u201cI clearly didn\u2019t take him seriously! But now that I see that shiny new car standing outside our door, I regret it.\u201d
\n\u201cHonestly, I tried to refuse him, darling,\u201d Cynthia told Gregory. \u201cBut this boy wouldn\u2019t listen to me! And it was so hard to play along! I.m terrible at acting, aren\u2019t I?\u201d she asked, scrunching her nose, and Jack laughed.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think so, Mrs. Smith!\u201d<\/p>\n
Gregory shook his head repeatedly. \u201cSo this old man was being played and he had no clue? Oh, what do I even say\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n
Both Cynthia and Jack laughed. \u201cAlright, alright, enough talking,\u201d Cynthia finally said. \u201cNow, because Jack has come all the way here for us, we can\u2019t just let him go. Come in and join us for breakfast, Jack, and there is no need to go to the store, Gregory. We have groceries that will last at least a week\u2026It was all part of the plan,\u201d she chuckled as she walked inside, Jack close behind her.<\/p>\n
As everyone sat at the dining table, Cynthia served breakfast and Jack began to recall his first encounter with Gregory. Cynthia knew bits and pieces of their story, but she wasn\u2019t aware of the entire episode.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo three weeks ago, Mrs. Simpson,\u201d Jack began. \u201cI met your husband at the airport. I was meant to fly the same flight as him to see my wife. She was in labor and I was very worried. In my anxiety, I didn\u2019t realize I got the date wrong on my ticket. It was for the next day. I only realized it while checking in.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause there were no more seats available that day, Gregory offered me his ticket and said, \u2018Boy, you NEED to be with your wife! Use my ticket and I\u2019ll use yours.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOkay,\u201d Cynthia said slowly, nodding. \u201cI know about the ticket swap. But what about the cars? I\u2019m still wondering what this car exchange has to do with anything\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gregory chuckled. \u201cThat\u2019s another interesting part\u2026Before we went to the check-in, Jack and I had met in the waiting room. We were casually talking, honey, and I mentioned that we were still paying off loans, so we can\u2019t afford a new car, and how our old one is giving us problems\u2026 After we exchanged tickets, this boy said, \u2018Today we switched tickets; in a few weeks, we\u2019ll exchange cars, that\u2019s a promise!\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cI clearly didn\u2019t take him seriously! But now that I see that shiny new car parked outside our door, I regret telling him we wanted a new car. Before departing, he took my address, and look what he\u2019s done! We can\u2019t keep it, Jack. We value your intentions, but this is unnecessary, boy\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
Cynthia nodded. \u201cGregory is right. We won\u2019t be able to keep the car. I didn\u2019t think much when you met with me yesterday and told me about this whole surprise, but I regret saying yes. Please, this isn\u2019t necessary\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n
But Jack shook his head. \u201cTrust me; it\u2019s nothing in return for what you did. Because of your husband, I got to be with my wife and baby. Please, I would feel bad if you turned down my present. I insist\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gregory and Cynthia couldn\u2019t say no to Jack. They accepted the car, but Jack\u2019s generosity did not end there. He was aware that after Gregory retired, he and Cynthia were struggling to pay off their loans, and as a result, they\u2019d been unable to complete their house repairs.<\/p>\n
So Jack took care of it for them. And one day, he came to visit them with his wife and baby daughter.<\/p>\n
While they live in different cities, the Smiths feel like they\u2019ve become a blended family with Jack. The young man checks on them every now and then and makes sure they don\u2019t miss out on anything, especially after learning the old couple didn\u2019t have any children of their own.<\/p>\n
What can we learn from this story?<\/p>\n
Kindness never goes unrewarded. Gregory offered his plane ticket to Jack so he could be with his pregnant wife, and in return, he and Cynthia received so much love and respect from Jack that they had not even thought of. Jack was like a son to them and cared for their smallest needs.
\nHelp someone whenever and in whatever way you can. Gregory could offer Jack his ticket to help him, and he did that. In return, he and his wife were blessed with the love of a son they never had.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A poor older man is unexpectedly rewarded for the kindness he showed to a stranger when he steps out of his house one morning and finds a brand new sports car instead of his old one. 80-year-old Gregory Smith stood on his front porch, dumbfounded. He pinched himself twice to ensure he wasn\u2019t dreaming and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":3213,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3212","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tales"],"yoast_head":"\n