26 Acts of Kindness - Day 11

For today's Act of Kindness we honored Jesse Lewis, age 6. Jesse was independent, wise and brave beyond his years, perhaps because he lived on a farm, where he worked and had a lot of freedom. Jesse was a cowboy - he tromped through the fields wearing boots, ripped jeans and an Army helmet, his face smudged with dirt. He loved his horses and his dogs, he loved to play soccer and run, and he fell asleep in his mother's arms almost every night. On the day he died he etched "I love you" into the frost on his mother's car - a message I'm sure she cherished then, and even more so now.

His parents described him as their "little soldier," which happened to be his favorite toy. He was a boy who lived passionately and was smart and courageous. His last actions are a testament to this. The police told Jesse's parents that he had died running towards the danger, not away from it. It seems that little Jesse was bravely charging - trying to protect his friends or trying to give them time to flee. His parents weren't surprised by this - it fit his character perfectly, and they are comforted in the fact that he died a hero.

Jesse was only 6 and he did what many of us adults could only hope we would be brave enough to do in similar circumstances. What an amazing young boy, and what a fine man he would have been.

So today my husband and I decided to honor Jesse by doing a random act of kindness for some others whose job it is to run into the danger trying to protect others; for the soldiers who shared Jesse's bravery, strength and selflessness.

I went to the store and bought a 6-pack from one of our many local micro-breweries. My plan was to take it to the local Armed Forces Recruitment Office and have them give it to the next person who came in and signed up. Then I realized that the new soldier probably wouldn't be old enough to legally drink. Oops! So I went to Starbucks and bought a gift card as well. We then took them over to the recruitment office - where we found separate offices for the Marines, Navy and Army.

"Which one?" my husband asked.

I pointed to the Army. Little Jesse wore an Army helmet and was a little "soldier"... of course it would have to be the Army office. We walked into the office and told the officer there that we were out doing random acts of kindness and we'd like give him this 6-pack (yes, we verified he was over 21!) and asked him if he could give the next new soldier the gift card. He smiled and thanked us, and said he most definitely would make sure the gift card made it to a young soldier. We thanked him for everything that he and our other Armed Forces members do for us every day.

We climbed back in the car and my husband turned to me and thanked me for bringing him along today. "This is fun," he told me. Yes, it is enjoyable to see the shocked smiles on people's faces. =)

And hopefully Jesse is smiling his infectious smile as well.

"Greater love hath no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." - John 15:13