This morning at a coffee shop in Shaoxing China, they were unable to swipe my Indian credit card after trying several ways and were also unable to change USD at their end. Neither of the two youngsters spoke English either. So there I was using my google translate asking them what now? The two of them looked at each other, exchanged a few words, smiled at me and gave me a free coffee.

These two youngster taught me three things today with their simple, yet powerful gesture.

Human goodness is universal and exists, in spite of all our doubts, cynicism and conflict we see in the world. The willingness and ability to go out of our way to help someone is a natural instinct if only we allow ourselves to be unfiltered and pure in our interactions. Compassion transcends labels.

We become our own stumbling block when we generalise and paint everyone from a certain background with the same brush. It is true that there are all colours and shades in every section of people, but to live our lives on generalisations is to rob ourselves of the opportunity of coming across some wonderful people and experiences in this world.

I was amazed at the ease with which these two youngsters at the cutting edge of their company made an out of the box decision. It is not the value of $4 but the confidence they displayed that came through. We have all probably come across people with much greater authority levels unable to think and decide out of the box. When we are comfortable stepping out, will we step up in life.

Acts of random kindness spark not only happiness, but also strengthen the fabric of society and reinforce the human connect at a fundamental level of goodness. It doesn’t necessarily take us to be Heads of Government, superstars, great achievers or breakthrough thinkers to build a better world. Sometimes all it takes is a cup of coffee.

(Picture – The coffee cup that made my day )