a random act of kindness I never thought of doing

On my morning walk, I noticed a woman on the path with her dog's leash in one hand, and a plastic grocery bag in the other. Because I am nothing if not curious, I wondered to myself why she was carrying that big bag.

My curiosity was satisfied seconds later, when she told her dog to sit, reached in the grocery bag and pulled out a plastic newspaper bag, and then used it to pick up a big ol' dog poop off the sidewalk. The kicker? Her dog hadn't done it. She was picking up poop from other people's dogs!

So of course I had to talk to her. As we passed each other I stopped and thanked her. I got a closer look at that grocery bag, too. It was chock full of poop from other people's dogs.

I told her I'd never ever seen anyone do what she was doing, and how much I appreciated her kindness. She said, "Oh, quite a few people do this, actually. It sure makes Louisville a nicer place to live."

Can you believe this? I was stunned. And humbled. And thrilled to have met a genuine good samaritan who matter-of-factly and anonymously contributes to the well being of so many others. What an inspiration!