I was at the bank earlier today because I was depositing money to pay off a speeding ticket I received yesterday. There was a gentleman who was being helped by an adjacent teller.

I was also there to place an order for checks. I know, I know, literally no one uses checks anymore, but the only options for paying for the speeding ticket was 1) Sending a check or money order through the mail or 2) Paying via the online form and incurring a 2.75% service fee (which came out to $5 on an already $181 ticket). I’m petty – if I could save $5 this way I honestly would.

My teller told me that ordering checks costs $18. I didn’t even realize that ordering checks would cost money. I thought that was the whole point of a CHECKING account. I really wasn’t about to pay $18 for something that I most likely won’t use more than once or twice a year.

The guy next to me just got finished what he was doing and was heading out. He heard me contemplate over whether to pay for the checkbooks, doubled back, and slapped $20 on the counter and told the clerk to “get him the checks.” I chased him down with the twenty and was trying to give it back to him – I didn’t really need those checks or the twenty dollars. My reluctance to buy the checks wasn’t necessarily from a needs-based perspective, I was just being frugal.

That honestly made my day. $20 is nothing to sneeze at: it isn’t life-changing money, but it wasn’t meant to be. This guy I don’t know and may never know wanted to do something extremely generous to a complete stranger. Something about that makes me a sense of sanguinity, especially in the face of the pain and suffering of current events.

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Whoever you are kind stranger, thank you