Russ Towne's A Grateful Man

Money for a Taxi Ride

My wife and I were out on the town with some other couples when an elderly woman who appeared quite down on her luck and perhaps homeless walked up to our group and asked if we were going in a specific direction. We said we were. She asked if we could perhaps give a lift to her because she had someplace important to be and had no car or money.

As we had driven together, the owner of the car said, “Sorry, our car is too small and we can’t help you.” Then he walked away.

When no one was looking, another member of our group took some money from his wallet and dropped it on the ground. He then bent down to pick it up and handed it to the elderly lady. As he did so, he said, “I think you may have dropped this ma’am. It should be enough to hire a taxi to take you to where you want to go.”

The elderly woman’s eyes misted over with happiness and surprise as she took the money. She gave a knowing and grateful look to him as she thanked him.

I’ll never forget the feeling I had when I saw the look in the woman’s eyes.

Those eyes reminded me once again how small kindnesses can make huge differences in the lives of others, and it brightened my evening and lifted my spirit to experience it.

Comments from a grateful man about this blog

My name is Russ Towne, and as the name of this blog says, I’m a grateful man. I’ve been married for 33 years to the same great woman and we have three wonderful grown children who have added immeasurably to our lives. Between having a loving extended family and friends that are simply terrific, I experience the feeling of gratitude many times every day.

As in all lives, I’ve had ups and downs, and have felt great joy and profound sadness. I hope that by sharing my feelings and experiences via lyrics, songs, and short stories that I’ve written or co-written, I may be able to help lift the spirits of others who are going through tough times, to help remind people of the inherent goodness and greatness in themselves and so many others, and to perhaps even inspire folks to find and pursue their own passions. If even one person finds solace, hope, kindness, a reflection of their own spirit, joy, or inspiration from this blog then it will have accomplished its mission. May you experience much joy, kindness, forgiveness, and gratitude–and just enough of the bitter to appreciate the sweet all the more–today and every day of your life!

With love and gratitude,

Russ