YOU CHANGED MY LIFE
“No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.”
Aesop, “The Lion and the Mouse”
I truly believe that one’s good deeds can inspire others to also be good. Here is a true story that I picked up from CNN based on the same philosophy. It was December 2, 2009, when Mohammad Sohail, a store owner at Shirley, New York, got a USD 50 bill with a thank-you letter for saving a shoplifter from a life of crime. The story began in May 2009, when Sohail was closing his shop, Shirley Express, at night, and the CCTV showed that a man with a baseball bat came to his store demanding money. Sohail somehow managed to have his rifle ready and aimed it directly at the robber’s face, forcing the man to drop his bat and lie on the ground. Unbeknownst to the man, Sohail never loaded his gun.
According to Sohail, the man immediately started to plead with him, tearfully saying, “I’m feeling sorry for myself. I have no food. I have no money. My whole family is hungry. Don’t call the police. Don’t shoot me.” He was nervous and scared.
What Happened Next
“When I saw him crying, I really felt bad for him. I said, ‘Oh man, this is something different,’” said Sohail.
Sohail made the man pledge to never rob anybody ever again, and then gave him USD 40 and a loaf of bread. Sohail, who is from Pakistan, said the man then wanted to be a Muslim like him, so he recited an Islamic oath and gave the would-be robber the name Nawaz Sharif Zardari. Sohail went to get some milk, but when he returned, the man had fled with the money and food. He thought the story had ended.
Nothing has any power over me
other than that which I give it through
my conscious thoughts.
Anthony Robbins
But the envelope that arrived on December 2, 2009, came as a surprise. Postmarked November 11 without a return address, it enclosed a USD 50 bill and a note apparently from the would-be robber. The typed letter began, “You changed my life,” and went on to say that the man was sorry for his actions six months ago.
“At the time, I had no money, no food on my table, no job, and nothing for my family. I know that it was wrong, but I had no choice. I needed to feed my family. When you had that gun to my head, I was 100% sure that I was going to die,” read the letter.
The letter said Sohail’s acts inspired him to become a true Muslim and that his life had changed dramatically. “I’m very happy that somebody got to change his life,” Sohail said.
Even a small act can have a great impact on someone’s life. I am glad that someone’s life has come to light from darkness.