I just helped a lady pay for her prescriptions

[michigandem58]

It wasn't a lot of money. She was standing there, pretty confused, trying to ask which medications were the most important, could she do a smaller dose, were they sure about her share, all that. I just said, let me take care of it. She asked if she knew me and why I was doing it. I just told her someone was kind to me once, and I was passing it on. The look of relief and happiness was priceless. The folks working there seemed pretty happy and relieved themselves.

Best damn feeling in the world, and all for less than dinner and a movie.

[elleng]

1. Thanks, and

post this at 'Good News,' please.

[michigandem58]

3. Good News?

Sorry I guess I don't know my way around well enough...

[elleng]

4. This group:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=forum&id=1267

Welcome!

[bettyellen]

2. thank you. this shit is heart breaking

[barbtries]

5. thank you

this fucking mean world!

[malaise]

6. I love kind acts

An elderly lady was in front of me at the supermarket recently and clearly didn't have half of the money for her goods. I know the cashiers at the supermarket well - they've been there for years - so I told our cashier to let the guy pack her goods - I never let the lady know because she would have been too embarrassed. It really wasn't much to add to our bill.
I know a lot of people who help others with food or medicine costs.

[Cryptoad]

55. Glory is in the act of Kindness

not the actor.

[malaise]

57. You know I don't see it as glory

It's just the right thing to do if you can afford to help someone.

[Cryptoad]

65. It is the right thing to do

and there is no need for someone to toot heir own horn about it. It defiles the act of Kindness!

[malaise]

69. Agreed

[grilled onions]

7. It's Damn Sad

What you did was beautiful. Yet I get so angry when I think of the millionaires out there who not only refuse to help a person in need but help create roadblocks to make it even tougher on those who have so little to live on as it is.
Here she is wondering if she can the dosage of one pill or another,can she skip another pill this month--it's all so heart breaking when they are trying to prevent Obamacare,trying to eliminate Medicare.
They are so lost at the grocery store. They have so little money yet often have so little to eat at home. Some are too proud to even ask for help at a food pantry. We need to open are eyes around our neighborhood to see if we can "silently" help one in need. It's tricky. Many will refuse help directly but if you have spare veggies from your garden or if a store has a buy one get one free you can always say I really can't use a second jar.
We cannot remain silent on this. Every time the 'pubs try to sweep it under the mat we should lift that damn mat and stir up the dust once again!

[Mr.Bill]

8. The Pubs don't sweep it under the rug.

They run candidates that insult these people and say they "need to take responsibility for their situation." Sound familiar?

[totodeinhere]

10. You are so right. Sometimes it's hard to know who might need help. A lot of people are too

embarrassed to admit they are in need and sometimes outward appearances can be deceiving.

[progressoid]

12. It's infuriating

This happens every day in America.

GREATEST HEALTHCARE IN THE WORLD!...if you can afford it.

[area51]

41. Sadly

the GingrichCare we're getting won't buy drugs in bulk to make them reasonably priced like they are in 1st world countries, nor will GingrichCare stop people from going bankrupt due to extremely expensive medical treatment.

[dionysus]

66. "GingrichCare"? that's a new one.

[totodeinhere]

9. God bless you for your kindness. The lady also needs to make

sure to investigate any benefits that she might be eligible for such as Medicare extra help with prescription drug costs if she is on Medicare. A lot of Medicare recipients are not aware that they qualify for this program. And if she is not on Medicare there might be other resource available to her. I hope that she can get access to a social worker who might be able to steer her in the right direction. She also needs to tell her physician that she is having trouble affording her medications. It might be possible to substitute a cheaper drug or prescribe a generic drug as opposed to a name brand drug. And she also needs to ask her pharmacist if there is some way that he or she might help. The pharmacist might also be in a position to recommend a cheaper alternative.

[Contrary1]

11. I did that once myself...

Standing behind a man who told the pharmacist how much money he had, and to do what she could. I waited for him to walk away, and asked the pharacist if he had enough for the two cheaper prescriptions. She said yes, so I took care of the other two.

He never knew who paid for them, but the look of happy relief on his face was reward enough for me. And the pharmacist told him the same thing you said...that I had received a kindness from a stranger, and I was just passing it forward.
Giving is the best medicine of all.

[Sunlei]

13. Thank you!

very kind thing to do

[Paper Roses]

14. Thank you for being so kind to this lady.

We may all be in her position some day.

[steve2470]

15. very kind of you ! :) nt

[lpbk2713]

16. Your OP and others here is what makes DU a great place.

Thanks for sharing and thanks for being you.

[jwirr]

17. Thank you.

[Live and Learn]

18. It does feel good, doesn't it?

Of course, these tragic episodes shouldn't exist to begin with but it is nice to know that some people really do care about others.

[pnwmom]

19. You deserve this.

[Helen Borg]

20. You made the world a bit better...

You are a good a person (just based on this act of kindness).

[Liberal_in_LA]

21. .

[Little Star]

22. Pay it forward!!!!! Good on you!

[Skittles]

23. I've done that too

for someone picking up medicine for her child - she was so upset I could not stand it

[leftstreet]

24. Lodge a complaint with the retailer and/or pharmacy

It's VERY RARE for pharmacists to stand back helpless while a patient appears confused or is forced to make a decision that could be dangerous

Healthcare professionals have been on the front lines in the for-profit war against patients and generally know all the options available

[DiverDave]

25. I once picked up the tab for a single mom and her kids

at a chinese restaurant.
A friend and I had just finished and I went over and asked her kids if they believed in Santa, the little boy pointed to his sister and said "she does, but I dont"
I told him that santa was real and walked over and paid their check.

I had never seen them before or since, but made me feel pretty good for my friend to tell me
I was just a big softee.

Yep, I am...lol

[Warpy]

26. I've done that for groceries, making up the difference

when the EBT card is running on empty or the wallet is. It's never much and I'm just glad folks get to eat because of it.

[840high]

28. Did that Friday at Kroger.

[sheshe2]

27. Thank you Michigan!

Your sweet act of kindness? Beautiful~

[mountain grammy]

29. You made everyone's day! It's a nice feeling.

[SammyWinstonJack]

30. ...

[Spitfire of ATJ]

31. "The folks working there seemed pretty happy and relieved themselves."

Cleanup on aisle 7.

[reflection]

54. Aw man, you beat me to it.

And I thought I was the only one who caught it.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

60. Great minds and all.

[Enrique]

61. now THAT is happy

maybe a little too happy.

[Chiennoir54]

32. Well done!

And I'm sure did you did out of pure goodness, but there really is nothing quite as exhilarating as that feeling, is there? If everyone did that just once a year, think how many acts of random kindness would improve the lives of each giver and each recipient.

[Nye Bevan]

33. Brings to mind Matthew 6:2 (nt)

[mimi85]

34. Although

we seem to have a "good-deed-doer" story at least once a week.
What would really make it special is just do it and don't tell anyone. That's even a better feeling - not to just try to get some kudos. JMO.

[OnyxCollie]

48. The OP has received a lot of flack

for posting homophobic articles from a crap blog.

It appears now that he's trying to establish some "cred."

Good for you for not falling for it.

[Mickju]

35. That's wonderful.

We should all be doing this if we have the means. It just makes the world a little bit better for everyone.

[calimary]

43. Welcome to DU, Mickju!

Glad you're here. Yes. We should all be doing something like this if we're able.

Much blessed? Much obligated.

[Flatulo]

37. If there really is karma in the universe, you just earned some points. Well done.

[emsimon33]

38. Thank you for your kindness.

[steve2470]

39. I like these threads. I wish we had more of them nt

[Th1onein]

40. GOOD for you, Michigandem58!

I do this kind of thing all the time, and it gives me great joy. We all need to do it, instead of consuming, consuming, consuming.

[Bette]

42. Big hearted

I love to hear these kinds of stories. It restores my faith in people, something that has been on shaky ground lately! Bless you for doing it!

[calimary]

44. Welcome to DU, Bette!

Good to have you with us! Couldn't agree more. There's so much ICK in the news, stories like these are incredibly restorative. Sorta gives one hope for humanity. After a day full of teabaggers, I'll take a few of these, happily!!!

[geckosfeet]

45. Good for you. And for all of us as well.

Ya done real good son. Real good.

[JNelson6563]

46. Thank you, kind soul.

[1StrongBlackMan]

47. Dontcha see ...

your "kindness" is self-defeating. See as long as people step in, we will never get to the point where enough people suffer to the point of rising up and over=throwing the system, giving rise to the glorious liberal new world ...

Or something like that.

Great job at being human.

[N_E_1 for Tennis]

49. Making Michigan Proud

Good, no, awesome job.

[OnyxCollie]

50. How nice

that you were close enough to listen to a woman discuss her personal health information with a pharmacist. The pharmacy I go to has a sign that says, "Respect the privacy of others. Stand back five feet."

You don't seem to mind eavesdropping on others. I guess that's why you keep posting those anti-Greenwald articles from the homophobic blog, The People's View.

Well, I'd write more, but I've got to save a children's orphanage from a runaway train. Wish me luck!

[leftstreet]

63. ...

[cilla4progress]

51. I did the exact same thing a few months back!

Poor woman - she had to choose between her cancer drugs and some sort of infection. It was going to cost her $10! We both cried...

[area51]

52. Just think of what it's like in actual 1st world countries,

where medications are reasonably priced and people have a right to health care. This wouldn't have been necessary.

[reflection]

53. That's a great story, BUT

I can't believe the staff just relieved themselves right there on the spot. That's disgusting.



No seriously, good on you. Can't say that I've done it for scripts, but I do this in the grocery store regularly when someone is trying to figure out what to put back to get their bill under "X".

[hamsterjill]

56. Simple, but sincere.

Thank you for doing what you did.

[TBF]

58. That was nice of you - but no substitute for universal health care. nt

[mazzarro]

59. May 1000 blessings be upon you, my friend. Yes indeed - pass it on forward -- n/t

[treestar]

62. Good soul you are

Reminds me of that story where President Obama as a young man paid for some lady's airline ticket.

[Tippy]

64. Same thing happened to me

Several years ago...back when prescriptions were cheaper, I know she was embarrassed I told her basically what you said.

[Stinky The Clown]

67. What pronoun did you use?

I'm frankly not buying this story.

You didn't enjoy the same adulation in this thread:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=3517286

[Rex]

68. IKR!?

nt.

[TBF]

71. Thank you -

I didn't want to be negative but this story smells.

It's the type of propaganda we see spewing around all the time. "Come live in this tiny house" "first world problems" "you don't like the minimum wage - try China where it's twenty six cents an hour" and all the rest.

The idea is that the working classes here in the US should be grateful for what we have and not ask for more. And we should especially not notice the extreme income equality around us - like the fact that the Walton family (owners of Walmart) have more wealth than 40% of this country.

[FLyellowdog]

70. A young couple with their small son were at the dentist's office.

They'd just been told that to get the dental procedure that the father needed would cost $****. The wife looked devastated and said they couldn't afford that much money. I said "Well, if you can come up with the other half, I'll pay the first half." They couldn't believe what they were hearing. She started crying and the man said that he certainly could because his new business was just starting up. He had a big irrigation job he was starting the next week and he'd have just enough money to pay his half of the bill. So I gave the secretary my credit card number and she said she wouldn't run it until they got the young man's share. Sure enough, about a month later, I got a call that the procedure had been done and my card charged. Easy peasy.

I usually only pay small amounts for others in the grocery line, but this couple really needed a big help so I helped.

While I'm not fond of quoting the Bible, if it's good enough for my President, it's good enough for me...
"To whom much is given is much required." Luke 12:48