LHJ's "11 Stories That Prove People Are Really Nice" by Caitlin Kelly...

After that dark and depressing post about the crisis of American culture, I found an inspiring and uplifting article I had to share...For those of you who know me, you can attest to the fact that I usually have a more positive and light-hearted outlook on life!

While reading September 2013 Ladies Home Journal (yes, I recently became a shameless fan), I stumbled upon "11 Stories That Prove People Are Really Nice."  After recent news reports of Miley Cyrus antics, and thugs taking innocent lives, I was thrilled to have my faith in Americans restored.  I genuinely believe the number of good people in America outweigh the bad...but sadly, our media does not always reflect this reality.

I recall witnessing my own 'good Samaritan' scenario a few months ago.  I was at Barnes & Noble and saw a complete stranger offer to walk 2 blocks away in the sleeting rain to feed the meter for a struggling mom with 2 squirming babies and a stroller.  It was so refreshing to see such a random act of kindness!

Enjoy reading the following article.  Hopefully it will make you smile today!

11 Stories That Prove People Are Really Nice

File these tales under "faith in mankind, restored!" We asked readers to share the random acts of generosity they'll never forget.

By Caitlin Kelly

THAT'S THE TICKET

 

"I was stuck in traffic in Times Square when a policewoman waved me over. I was sure I was going to get some kind of summons. Instead she gave me her tickets to see a Liza Minnelli concert that night, which she couldn't attend because she had to work. She told me she had tried to stop other people, but they just kept driving. The tickets were probably worth about $100 each. I went and I had a fabulous time!"
- Tina Mosetis, 48, Great Neck, New York

ALL EXPENSES PAID

"My husband, Adrian, who's in the navy, once took me on a weekend trip to Chicago. As we were checking into the hotel we started chatting with an older man who was also staying there. When he found out Adrian was in the military, he told us he was a veteran -- and he paid for our weekend stay at the hotel to thank my husband for his service. No stranger had ever done anything that nice for us."
- Erica Grajales, 33, Mundelein, Illinois

A KEY MOVE

"One evening I went out grocery shopping with my young sons while my husband, Dan, was working late. When I got back to the car with two tired boys, I realized the keys were in the ignition and the doors were locked. 'I'll call AAA,' I thought. Then I noticed my cell phone was on the passenger's seat. It was 8:00, the temperature was dropping, none of us had a jacket, and my 3-year-old, who had been riding in the shopping cart, wasn't wearing shoes. When a woman standing nearby overheard me explaining the situation to the boys, she immediately offered her cell phone and her AAA membership number. She waited 45 minutes with us, and even got a jacket and blanket out of her car to keep us warm."
- Colleen Clemens, 38, El Toro, California

STOLEN MOMENTS RETURNED

"Shortly after our third child was born, someone stole our camera. It had all of the precious pictures of her birth and her first weeks home. We were heartbroken. Then, two years later we received a package in the mail: It was our camera, with every single picture still on it. Apparently someone had found it, recognized our older daughter's former preschool teacher in one of the photos and tracked her down. Because we had moved, the teacher asked around to get our new address. What a blessing to have our once-in-a-lifetime pictures back!"
- Leah Chamberlin, 31, Excelsior Springs, Missouri

NEW WHEELS

"My husband and I were shopping at a department store with our two young children when a voice over the loudspeaker asked 'the couple with the two umbrella strollers' to come to the main office. That was us! We were told that someone had anonymously bought us a double stroller. This was a godsend since the two strollers we were using made it difficult for me to go places on my own with the kids."
- Whitney Idalia Stevenson, 23, American Fork, Utah

STEALTH CLEANING

"We live in a college town with our three small children. Our building is a three-floor walk-up and students live in the other two apartments. The porch of the building is filled with my kids' stuff -- bikes, scooters, helmets, and toys. It's a mess. One evening when I came home, the porch was completely clean. The floor had been swept, the toys and gear were stowed neatly in buckets, and our bikes were hanging safely on the rail. I like to think it was done by a student helping out my frazzled family."
- Isra Hashmi, 40, Boston

OUR BODYGUARD

"On our way to the Jersey Shore one weekend, a bike fell off our car rack at the entrance to the George Washington Bridge. A tow truck driver came up behind us, turned on his lights, and blocked traffic so my husband could retrieve the bike."
- Jennifer Wu Miles, 49, Sleepy Hollow, New York

MOTHERLY ADVICE

"When I was 18 I was in the navy and stationed on the opposite side of the country from most of my family. I had planned to cook dinner for my boyfriend, but as I walked through the grocery store, I realized that I had no idea what I was doing -- and I started to cry. I felt a hand on my back and a sweet Southern voice asked me, 'What's all this fuss about, sugar?' I told the woman why I was overwhelmed. She said, 'Honey, you come with me. We'll get you an easy meal to cook for that nice young man.' And she did!"
- Rachel Cavey, 29, Redding, California

SNOW ANGEL

"I was working a second job as the night supervisor in a pharmacy when it started to snow really hard. I was dreading the prospect of digging out my car and navigating the snow-covered roads to get home. But when I got out to the parking lot, I saw that someone had cleaned all of the snow off of my car and scraped my windshield. In the small bit of snow they left on the hood, they had written, 'Get home safely!'"
- Jerri Green, 52, Cincinnati

THE MAGIC MOWER

"Last summer, when our lawn mower broke, my husband had to use a weed trimmer to cut our grass. It was hot out, so he came in to take a break and get something to drink. When he went back outside, a beautiful used mower was sitting in our yard with a note that read, 'I had what you needed!'"
- Kathryn McGuire Richards, 46, Oran, Missouri

PAY IT BACKWARD

"I was at the drugstore picking up a few little gifts for my grandmother, who was in the hospital, and was talking to my mom on the phone about what to buy. Obviously, someone overheard me, because when I reached the front of the line the cashier told me the woman ahead of me had paid for my things, about $50 worth. I don't know who she was, or where she went -- or even how she knew how much to pay. I'm still baffled!"
- Julia Stone, 41, Narberth, Pennsylvania