Humans are wonderful beings.

Wednesday started out like any other day where I'm scheduled to work at Barnes & Noble: David and I get up, I make our lunches for the day, David gets a ride with somebody to school, then I get ready to go to work. However, on this particular day, I couldn't find the keys to the car when I was ready to drive to work. David accidently took them with him. And we've only got One Key to the car.

My stress level went from 0 to 10 in about 3 seconds. David actually thought it was funny later that I texted him and called him twice in less than a minute. He was in class, so he couldn't respond right away, but at the time I was panicking . . . Then I sent out a text message to all my neighbors explaning the situation and asked if anyone would be willing to drive me to work.

Do you know that within 90 seconds I had heard back from about 5 people willing to take me? I was SO surprised and grateful. I got a ride from the first person I heard back from, and she also offered to pick me up later that day so I could get home in time to teach piano lessons.


I was listening to a speech the other day given by a economist from Princeton? I think? who was trying to figure out how all these tests he was studying revealed that people who donate time or money actually are financially better off/successful than those who don't. He was confused by the results because it seems obvious that first you need to accumulate wealth before you spread it, but all his data said otherwise. You got more because you gave. This economist goes on to explain after he talked with a collegue in psychology, he found out that people's brains are actually wired to be happy/successful/optimistic after giving donations or volunteering or just helping somebody, which in turns helps them out and simultaneously puts them in a leadership position. So this economist was actually able to prove that people who donate time, money, blood, volunteer, etc are more successful (he actually gave a $ amount of how much more better off they are per year). He argued that that is why America is so well off, because the average American statistically gives a Lot more to help the less fortunate than citizens in other countries. We can do better, of course, but America is not truly the stingy, selfish glutton that we are accused of and sometimes see ourselves as.


Barnes & Noble is doing a book drive for kids who don't have books at home; we ask customers if they would like to buy and donate a book from our store. I was working at the cash register on Friday, and so I was in charge of asking the majority of the customers if they would like to donate--I bet within a 4 hour period I got almost 20 books, and once again I was just amazed/humbled/so happy to see people so willing to go out of their way to help others.

Maybe it's just the Christmas season coming up, or maybe I have just been seeing everything through rose-colored glasses for a few days after listening to the economists' schpeel, but it's a nice change to realize people are innately good, something that is sometimes difficult to do when the media we are surrounded by is so quick to point out otherwise. . . .
Now I just need someone to break into our car again and make me eat my words ha ha.