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How making a little extra effort produces happiness for receivers and givers alike
Take Visitors Where They Need To Go
When visiting Paris, my friend and I took the Metro to Montmartre to see the area and the Sacre Coeur Basilica. Its front steps offer stunning views of Paris. As dominant of a building as it is, I thought it would be obvious where it was, once we exited the Metro station. It wasn’t. I asked an elderly lady which direction it was in. She didn’t speak any English, and my “French” is pathetic, but she gestured for us to follow her. She led us down the street about three blocks to a point where the church was clearly visible. I nodded and thanked her, but she motioned insistently several times that we continue to follow her. We went about twenty more steps and she gestured with her hand for us to look up. Before us was a stunning, carpet of green grass and an unobstructed view of the basilica she wanted us to see, one we would have missed if we hadn’t continued to follow her. We thanked her and then she turned and went on her way, down the same little street she had probably walked for decades before. She wouldn’t settle for doing a partial kindness, but only the fullest one she could offer. Such sweetness and concern for strangers for us to emulate.
Lawrence J. Danks is the author of Your Unfinished Life, a guide to finding happiness, success, improved self-esteem and personal fulfillment. It is available through Amazon.com, Barnesand Noble.com, Baker and Taylor and other leading booksellers.
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