We all enjoy when nice things happen to us but sometimes, we need to not look for the large things and start looking at the smaller things in life. One of the things that we can look for is a little courtesy from others. Those types of small gestures can make a difference in our day and any type of compassion that is shown from strangers is typically accepted with grace. In other words, it’s nice to be nice.
Brooke Ochoa of Louise, Texas is a woman who understands this all too well. At 30 years old, she was waiting to hold the door open for an elderly lady who was approaching the restaurant. She considered it to be just a polite act and she had no idea that the lady would make a remark that would eventually go viral.
When she helped the other woman went into the restaurant, it was only Brooke who overheard her ask for a ‘table for one’.
It seems as if the elderly lady was going to dine alone but Brooke approached her and asked her a simple question. She went to her table and said: “I’m eating by myself too would you like to have lunch together?”
She accepted her offer and let her know that her name was Dolores. She was very happy to have the company and they became friends quickly.
Dolores told Brooke that she had been going through some difficult times. Brooke wrote the following in a Facebook post: “Come to find out, she spent the last decade living with her mom, who recently passed away, and her aunt, who recently was put into a nursing home.”
“She has been having a hard time being alone.”
She continued: “She just kept smiling and saying thank you for listening to me, which made me smile too! Her words healed my heart just as much as I healed her lonely one.”
Dolores and Brooke continued to eat their dinner together and enjoy the conversation. They decided that they would meet on Thursdays every week.
Brooke provided another update shortly after that first meeting. She said that Dolores had passed away but she touched so many lives before she did so.
This may be just a chance conversation but it shows that even small gestures can make a big difference in our lives. Neither of them knew that Dolores only had a matter of days left but they made good use of the time that they did have together.
