Inspirational
Give Me Your Baby Now The Mother Starts Crying After Seeing This
“At first, it seemed completely normal, but then, as she watched, the odd man took the baby from her arms, tears began painting her cheeks. She couldn’t help but wonder why this was happening. She grabbed her phone from her purse and quickly took a photo. She had to let the rest of the world know about this.
Lisa Endrich was no stranger to stress. Being a single mom was already hectic enough; having twins might have been double the love, but it was also double the work. Life was a constant juggling act from the minute she woke up to the second her head hit the pillow.
And a recent event made it so much harder; it was a hit and run. Someone had run a red light, clipped the front of Lisa’s car, and sped away, making her old four-door undrivable. Thankfully, her children weren’t in the vehicle at that time, but now she was without transportation, something vital to her life. There was only one painful option.
She hadn’t even walked through the front door yet, and her wallet was already hurting. There was no other option. Her boys squirmed in her arms, irritable from the long day and hot weather. The tears had been going on for hours, and she was ready to add her own. She stumbled into the Car Rental Station, barely holding things together. One twin was bellowing at the top of his lungs; the other fought against her motherly grip. On top of it all, she had to carry her purse and baby back. But Lisa had to power through. She made it to the counter where an employee was waiting, already looking sympathetic.
Then something amazing happened. Without asking for his help, the man quickly offered to hold one of her crying babies. It might have seemed insignificant to most people, but that little extra help was a massive weight off her shoulders. It was so strong that tears welled up. But the surprises didn’t end there. Lisa watched as the man bobbed the baby in his arms and talked to the boy as he helped her sort out the rental. The employee played phone and hummed a simple tune to try and soothe the crying boy, and it worked. It turns out it wasn’t a fatherly gene that made him so in tune with what was happening; it was a simple act of kindness, but something so rare for Lisa that she had to snap a photo and post it on social media.
John Goodlook and his priceless gesture made a terribly stressful day a little easier to manage. Needless to say, the post went viral. But what did Jon have to say? Lisa listened in amazement as Jon explained that he remembered how much his mother had struggled with being a single parent, and he knew his brother and him had been more than a handful at times.
But the fact he had a brother wasn’t the unbelievable detail that left Lisa flabbergasted. John was a twin too. Aside from his kind nature, he had an extraordinary level of empathy that most wouldn’t understand. That’s why it was so automatic and natural to scoop up one of the boys so Lisa could have less of a struggle for a few minutes.
His act of kindness didn’t go unnoticed, though. Lisa’s post about John went viral on social media; she had over 224,800 reactions and 24,600 shares in no time. But things didn’t end there. People were so astonished by John’s kindness that the post kept circling the internet, picking up far more attention than Lisa ever imagined.
The internet exploded with the hashtag #BeLikeJohn. People commended him for his help; others commented that this is what people should automatically do, even though that’s not always the case. The overwhelming support got the attention of Enterprise Rent-A-Car, where John worked, and they decided to take charge of the situation.
To show their appreciation for their new employee’s actions, Enterprise Rent-A-Car offered John a gift card to be used at their company, but Jon refused it, stating that he’d rather donate the money to charity. It was yet another act of kindness from a man who didn’t seem to have enough of it. But Enterprise Rent-A-Car’s generosity didn’t end there.
They said they would donate to whatever charity John wanted. It was even more touching when Lisa found out that Jon chose to give it to the Boys and Girls Club of America, an after-school sports program that had some famous former members, including Denzel Washington and Shaquille O’Neal.
But there was more. Enterprise Rent-A-Car’s generosity didn’t just end with John; they reached out to Lisa and gifted her with something she really needed. The company gave Lisa a double stroller so she’d never have to go through the same thing again. It was one of the best things Lisa could have gotten as a gift since it was something she didn’t have.
Lisa watched with a huge smile as the video kept climbing, eventually reaching over 3 million views and tens of thousands of likes. She was so happy that Jon’s act of simple kindness was so inspirational to others. The hit and run had still made her life exponentially more complex and expensive, but there was something new to counter the negatives. Her car was badly damaged in the crash, and she’d have to keep her rental for a little while longer. But her encounter with John seemed to have turned such a tragic situation into something that left an impact on millions of people.
But was it really such a big deal? It was a precious memory that Lisa could carry with her for years to come. However, Jon’s point of view differed from hers; he couldn’t understand why people were so amazed by something that came naturally to him. He saw it as something everyone should be doing.
People should automatically help others. When questioned about his opinion on the way his kindness blew up, John simply said, “I’m still blown away,” and that “it just makes you wonder, what did I do so special?” For him, it was nothing more than acting on instinct. He felt that he was just doing his job and was shocked to see that the world made such a big deal out of it.
John also added that he hopes that the post will help to get the message out there, that this is the way people are supposed to treat each other every day. That’s a statement to live by. A little bit of help here and a smile there could turn someone’s world upside down, even if we don’t know it.
Even though John’s manager wasn’t there at the time, he was told about the way John acted. He praised John for his performance at work and for jumping into the work without hesitation. Even though Lisa’s story touched hearts around the world, it was the impact John had on her that day that will stay with her. At the time, her mind was bogged down with stress, and even though he didn’t do much, the small gesture of kindness changed everything for her.
She had two bawling toddlers who couldn’t sit still, a broken car, and a pile of paperwork to juggle. To her, it was all just a mission. Lisa needed a break but couldn’t afford it, until she met Jon. He gave her an opportunity to get the breather she needed, and he did it in style. With a baby on one hip and a phone in his hand, he did everything he could to process her information as quickly as possible so she could have a car and get on her way. He wasn’t bothered by the constant babbling or the amazed stares he got from the twins. Instead, he seemed to be in his element, and that’s what made her encounter so memorable.
And it seems like Jon wasn’t the only one who was enjoying himself; the twins were having a ball in the Rent-a-Car office. They were exploring and learning new things; they even got a chance to play with the phone. What was supposed to be a difficult task turned into a fun-filled day thanks to John. Aside from the hashtag, the phrase “Be a John” has started to catch on, and Lisa couldn’t be happier. Anytime she goes past one of those rental places, she will have that excellent memory of how she met John and how he helped her that day.
To top it all off, John’s beautiful soul got the recognition it deserved. Anyone who has twins knows it’s not easy to cope. It is made worse if the parent is having a rough day like Lisa did. When moments like these happen, people on the outside often get irritated by the crying child or the parent’s desperate attempts to calm them. It’s rare for someone to step in and help with the situation; they often just roll their eyes and try to get away.
Not everyone can see what it actually does to the parent. In many cases, the parent feels helpless, and that is often accompanied by the feeling that they are not doing a good enough job at parenting or that they’re doing something wrong. Those feelings are amplified when the parent is struggling with two crying babies and inadequate equipment to help them take charge of the situation.
So when Jon stepped in to help Lisa, he was a true hero in her eyes. Instead of rolling his eyes and mumbling something incohesive as he walked away, he saw her struggles. He took charge and turned something that was bogging her down into a happy memorable experience, proving that kindness and a simple helping hand don’t just still exist in this world, but that they genuinely leave an impact on the other person.
The hashtag #BeLikeJohn is meant to show us that we should still care about one another. Instead of getting irritated by seeing a parent’s struggles, we should act in a way that could help that person, even if it’s just for a split second. Being a John doesn’t cost anything. It doesn’t hurt to offer someone a smile or a helping hand. Who knows, it might even make their day.