10 May A Lot of Random Today

☀Brighten someone’s day☀ A random encounter with a random person which led me to a random act of kindness which apparently made me reflect about the relationship of race and trust of which I must say a random thought as well.

☀For this blog, I want to relay how a random act of kindness lead me to think about the relationship of race and trust.  So I was out in a place called the Avalon, I was out there for a particular errand or two. Then suddenly this Lady (I’ll call her by the name Lady) just called on me for help. It’s like she picked me out of the crowd. There were few people standing around but she chose me. It’s almost like I was targeted. At the back of my mind, why would she call me from the rest of this crowd and how did she choose and trust me about her dilemma at that time. Is it because we kind of look alike?

Race and Trust

SO my initial judgment as to why the woman chose to ask me for help is because of how we looked the same. I believe this is usually the case, we identify with people that look like us, and sound like us. This reminds me of a book called, “Why all the black kids sit together in the cafeteria”. No matter where we go, people identify with other people that look like themselves. Because of my curiosity, I did some research regarding race and trust.  So why do we trust people of the same racial identity more than people of different racial identity? It is because race has an important role in building trust.  It is one of the various determinants of trust. People are more likely to trust people of the same race or ethnicity.

If you're wondering about the random encounter, this is how it went:

So this Lady approaches me and says

Sir, I need your help.

THEN she talks about how her car broke down on her and that she needs a ride. And that the hotel has put her out because it’s her last day. She wants to get this car fixed and she wants to be near it and she’s saying she has nowhere to go. She looks and sounds just like me. I believe setting initial judgments to build trust is important. She tells me she has nowhere to go around the area because her car is still being fixed and it’s her last day at the hotel. She wants me to take her to a place called Beaufort which is at least an hour away. So, I understand. And yes, she sounds incredibly intelligent and she’s an older lady. She has a Coach bag. She has some really nice gym shoes. And because I needed to be back at my work in a little while I told her I can’t fully grant her request but what I can do is help her out in the direction that I’m going. I’m asking questions in order to make a good assessment of what she really needs. IF there’s one thing I observed with the Lady she is not embarrassed but a little disheartened of her current situation. She goes into this thing and tells me how she has always been independent and has never needed anybody for anything. I believe she’s just a bit broken, a bit disheartened.

I am astonished about how she tries to help herself from feeling sorry so I tried to crack a joke.

 I told her that yes, she does need somebody for something because she needs me right now.  When you see people in this kind of situations you really need to do something. I just reassured her that everything will be okay and I let her know that help is available when people request.

☀ The moral of the story is when you see someone WHO needs help. You never know when it could be you, help them out. When you say you’re going to do something for them, let your word be your bond.

☀  Every day, Ellen Degeneres ends her show  with a reminder to be kind with one another.  Indeed, a small act of random kindness can go a long way.