by Gail Hamm, program director

Random acts of kindness are just that- random, arbitrary, subject to chance; as well as benevolent, kind, and caring. It’s a stretch to say that cancer is a random act of kindness, but I suppose that argument could be made. Chance? Luck of the draw? Yes, chance may play a part in whether or not you get cancer. Kindness? Certainly a diagnosis of cancer captures our attention, and cancer may cause us to appreciate life all the more, but I believe that few would say that cancer is kind.

Yet people with cancer may use the experience to make a difference in someone else’s life. I want to share a secret with you. There is an Anonymous Donor (I’ll call AD) in our midst. This person is a client of Cancer Services of Northeast Indiana. Every time AD comes in and obtains a case of nutritional drink, AD purchases a case for the next person who cannot afford to buy their own.

It’s a great surprise to that next client, to find out that just by chance, a stranger has provided for them. It makes a difference to that second client and brightens their day. I’m sure it does the same for AD, too. One random act of kindness. Two people blessed.