When Kindness comes full circle

In an attempt to be "more organized" (i'm sure Zola's Dad is having a good laugh now!),  I am decluttering not just my closet but my inbox as well!  While sorting it, I saw this e-mail and thought of sharing it with everyone. It is a beautiful story that is worth sharing (and worth reading again to some of us probably).

This is a true story that happened in 1892 at Stanford University . Its morale will always be relevant.

A young, 18-year-old student was struggling to pay his fees. He was an orphan, and not knowing where to turn for money, he came up with a bright idea. A friend and he decided to host a musical concert on campus to raise  money for their education.  They reached out to the great pianist Ignacy J. Paderewski. His manager demanded a guaranteed fee of $2000 for the piano recital. A deal was struck. And the boys began to work to make the concert a success.

The big day arrived. Paderewski performed at Stanford. But unfortunately, they had not managed to sell enough tickets. The total collection was only $1600. Disappointed, they went to Paderewski and explained their plight. They gave him the entire $1600, plus a cheque for the balance $400. They promised to honour the cheque soonest possible.

 "No." said Paderewski. "This is not acceptable." He tore up the cheque, returned the $1600 and told the two boys "Here's the $1600. Please deduct whatever expenses you have incurred. Keep the money you need for your fees.And just give me whatever is left" The boys were surprised, and thanked him profusely.

 It was a small act of kindness. But it clearly marked out Paderewski as a great human being. Why should he help two people he did not even know? We all come across situations like these in our lives. And most of us only think "If I help them, what would happen to me?" The truly great people think, "If I don't help them, what will happen to them?" They don't do it expecting something in return. They do it because they feel it's the right thing to do.

Paderewski later went on to become the Prime Minister of Poland . He was a great leader, but unfortunately when the World War began, Poland was ravaged. There were over 1.5 million people starving in his country, and no  money to feed them. Paderewski did not know where to turn for help. He reached out to the US Food and Relief Administration for help.

The head there was a man called Herbert Hoover - who later went on to become the US President. Hoover agreed to help and quickly shipped tons of food grains to feed the starving Polish people. A calamity was averted.  Paderewski was relieved. He decided to go across to meet Hoover and person­ally thank him. When Paderewski began to thank Hoover for his noble gesture, Hoover quickly interjected and said, "You shouldn't be thanking me Mr. Prime Minister. You may not remember this, but several years ago, you helped two young students go through college in the US . I was one of them."

Herbert Hoover (left) and Ignacy Paderewski (right)
Photo Source

It's so amazing how a random act of kindness can inspire and change one man and help a nation in the end.  This is kindness coming full circle.  I am sure all of us want to make this world a better place . . .so let's do something nice for someone everyday. 

Spread some kindness! =)

(To validate this story, I've googled both men and found an article here which features Herbert Hoover, his life, his endeavors and how his friendship with Paderewski has played a role in his humanitarian efforts in helping Poland during and after the War. )