Pay it Forward

A few weeks ago I noticed a link to a Pay it Forward video on one of the blogs I follow. It seems that on a particular Saturday a few weeks ago, there was a donut store in Massachusetts that had a "pay-it-forward" string of nearly 60 consecutive customers.

It all started because a customer who had been at the donut shop on Friday had someone pay for her coffee and donut. She was so touched by this gesture, she came back Saturday with the expressed intention of paying for someone else's breakfast.

Now the really interesting part of the story is the woman who received the gift on Friday and started the chain on Saturday was unemployed. She actually said in the interview she really didn't have the money to "spare" but since such generosity had been bestowed on her, she came back Saturday with extra money to make sure to be able to afford whatever the next order price was.

And the chain began. At one point in the interview, the donut store staff said they noticed something was going on. It was one, then two, then 10 consecutive pay-it-forward purchases.

Around 15, the guy taking orders said he started telling people, "We are at 15, 18, 22 consecutive pay-it-forward orders. You can keep it going, or you can let it end. Your choice."

The shop owner said the chain only broke when the line ended.

While this is a fun story, it isn't something I would normally blog about. The reason you are hearing about it from me today is because of one of the comments written below the video I watched. One thing about the Internet is people are able to provide their own comments to stories, in real time. Generally, they are good, positive responses when commenting on a "feel good" story such as this.

However, there is a lot of hate and discontent in the world, and it often rears its ugly head on the Internet. There is something about the "anonymity" of the Internet that allows people to feel freedom to just tear into others.

And this was the case with this pay it forward story.

One of the comments was something like, "These people came into the store expecting to spend money, and they all had the money to make their purchases. If you truly want to help someone, sponsor a child in a third-world country. That is a better use of your money."

Certainly, please sponsor children in third-world countries. If you know me, you know my wife and I do sponsor two young girls each month, and it is a priority for us to ensure we are able to be a part of their lives in this way.


I guess what really upset me about the comment, and the reason I listed it as a 10:10 Muse blog topic, was the level of hostility. The way I read the comment, this person was really angry these people felt so good about paying it forward for other "rich" people. The poster was angry at generosity!

There is far too much anger, hate, and aggression in our world today. And, as I stated earlier, the "anonymity" of the Internet probably gives people more license to type things they would never say in a face-to-face situation.

So that is why I so enjoyed the pay-it-forward story. People who are generally so self absorbed, got in the spirit of generosity because one lady was so touched by generosity the previous day.

And that is something to celebrate! Not something to hate.

We need more people helping others get a hand up, so please consider if it is appropriate for you to support those who are far less fortunate they we are today.

But we also need those inspirational stories every now and then. It is in the little things, the everyday things, we find the beauty of the world around us.

Who will you inspire today with your generosity?