Good Deeds and other musings

oday, I had the opportunity to perform two goods deeds.

The first good deed was really simple and took hardly any time, so I’m not sure if it actually qualifies as a good deed. I was in Superquinn Shopping Centre having my glasses adjusted and when I came out of the Opticians office a gentleman, with a lovely Cork accent, approached me and asked if there was a taxi rank in the centre. I told him he hadn’t a chance in hell of getting a taxi and that the nearest rank was about 20 minutes walk away in the village. He told me he had been in a meeting in the centre and didn’t think to organise a taxi. I asked him where exactly he was headed and he said he was to meet a colleague at Finnstown House Hotel. Well, I told him he could walk there in about 10 minutes, but it was an awful soft day (that’s Irish for lashing rain), so I said “jump in the car” and I’d drop him off. He was mightly surprised that I offered and told me he thought I was very trusting. We had a pleasant short chat, as it is less than five minutes to the Hotel, and I dropped him off at the front door.

Driving back to the office, I thought, until he mentioned that I was trusting it hadn’t occured to me to question my trust in people. Anyway I reckon I’m single handedly ensuring that the Irish “Cead Mile Failte” is alive and well in Dublin.

The second good deed, is without doubt a good deed. Again, later the same day I was back in Superquinn at the Opticians. I needed cash to pay for the repairs to my glasses, so I went to the Ulster Bank ATM. I was surprised to see that two fifty euro notes in the cash dispenser. I smiled, just like something I’d do, I thought i.e. someone so distracted they don’t know whether they are coming or going. So I took the cash out, put in my card and withdrew one hundred euro. I then went into Customer Services and told the lady behind the counter that I had found a sum of money in the cash machine. I left the money in an envelope, with my name and mobile telephone number in case someone came to enquire about the cash.

The lady at Customer Services thought I was very honest and complimented me. I’m a bit bemused by that, I don’t consider that I was being particularly honest. I’d articulate it this way, “it’s not my money” end of story, so what else would I do but turn it over. Again I’m interested in the perception of others that my actions are surprsing.

Hmmm, I’ve now decided to do at least one good deed a day, perhaps if I persist I will eliminate this cynicism, it seems so sad … and in today’s society pervasive. It also occurs to me, that if I need to protect myself from anything, it is from falling into cynicism myself. A tragic fate indeed.