“You’ve got to try a little kindness; yes, show a little kindness; just shine your light for everyone to see.” These are words from a song written by Curt Sapaugh and Bobby Austin. Glen Campbell recorded Try a Little Kindness in 1970.

Last week, on an exceptionally brilliant day, I was feeling particularly high on energy and just happy to be out and about. It was the kind of day when a person had a bounce in their step, and everything felt right in the world. I was leaving a local grocery store with groceries in a market bag slung over my shoulder.

My mother was probably rolling over in her grave to know I was wearing white capris, a white t-shirt, and a white sweater. In my defense, my shoes were pastel plaid, so I hadn’t completely lost my senses. After all, there’s that whole “no wearing white before Memorial Day” in the Northern New England State of Maine. I know it’s silly, but it is what it is, and some things take time to change.

Anyway, an adorable older couple was walking toward the store. Our paths met nearly at the door. Both were short in that shrunken way we tend to get as we get into our later years. He held firmly to half of the cart handle, and she held firmly to the other. Honestly, it’s been a long time since I’ve seen such an unmistakable bond between two people. They looked out for each other in the way of long-time friends who needed no direction.

I paused and, smiling broadly, told them I thought they were an adorable couple. Well, in that old-timer fashion, he grinned and, nodding toward his mate, said, “I picked her up at a bar down the street.” She smiled brightly, her eyes shining with a starry twinkle but flustered. I said to her, “No worries, I’ve got this,” and winked, saying to her gentleman partner, “You mean to tell me she went home with the likes of you!”. She started laughing (fortunately, because that could have gone badly, I now realize), and it was his turn to look flustered, but he laughed, too.

As I went on my way, my heart kept smiling even more brightly because meeting them had made my day so much better. Behind me, I could still hear them laughing and giggling like a couple of teenagers as they slowly continued to the store entrance.

I don’t know if they realized how brightly their light shined as a couple. As I reflect on them, it’s funny to think about how much of an impact they made on me. They had me remembering the Scammons in Strong, Maine, and countless other older couples I knew in years past who supported each other without even needing to speak and made their way through life, making other people’s lives just a bit brighter just because they could, not because they had to.

I hope my kindness shined a light on their path, too.

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