The Taxi Driver

I was nineteen and completely broke.

One night, I needed a taxi to get home.

When we arrived, I reached into my pocket.

I had barely enough money.

The driver looked at me.

"Keep it."

I insisted.

He refused.

"One day, you'll understand."

I thought he was being generous.

Years later, I became financially successful.

One evening, I saw an elderly man struggling to pay for his groceries.

Without thinking, I paid for them.

He thanked me.

I smiled.

And suddenly remembered the taxi driver.

I understood.

Kindness isn't always a transaction.

Sometimes someone helps you simply because someone once helped them.

And the only way to repay that kindness is to pass it forward.