A brief act of kindness brings an unexpected insight.

I was shopping at a department store and had just boarded the down escalator when I noticed a woman standing to the side. She looked about 65, and her expression told me she was scared.

I turned toward her and asked, " Do you need help?" As the escalator continued moving I heard the woman reply softly, " I’m afraid." There was a hint of incredulity in her voice." Want me to come back and get you?" I called to her. She nodded. But by the time I reached her, the woman had reconsidered. " I don’t think I can do it," she said. I was suddenly aware that I had made a far greater investment than I expected." I know we can do it," I said. " I can hold on to you." She looked down at the beast. Then her eyes came back to mine, looking doubtful. " This has never happened to me before," she said, as much to herself as to me.

I felt that her sudden fear had to do with the escalator’s mechanical nature, its basic inhuman untrustworthiness. I took her arm. " Shall we?" She made a little sound of alarm as we stepped on, but we’d passed the point of no return. She relaxed slightly as the stairs moved us downward." I don’t understand this at all," she said.

As we neared the bottom, her grip tightened again, but we did fine." I’m so grateful..." she began." It was nothing," I said. " I was happy to do it." Happy, yes. I do very little to help others. I am busy caring for a family and working full time. For a brief moment, I had a flash of insight into why someone would become a nurse or a social worker or a minister. When I helped the woman, I felt pure and whole, purposeful. It was a happier moment than I’d had in weeks.