Wouldn’t You like to be his Neighbor?

 

Point to Ponder: "Such honesty shows that (He) probably was raised by parents who were (are) either religious or with strong moral background. As humans we all must have respect for our neighbor. A neighbor is any person on the streets, and not necessarily one that lives next door. I would love to be (his) neighbor. If we all respect our neighbor or even care for a neighbor's needs, this world would be such a beautiful place. How can America instill this kindness, respect for others, etc,?:crime would decrease and the world would be a better place. Thank you for sharing (his)'s honesty in your reflections on Thanks Giving Day." --Dennis Ferraz in response to Friday Reflection (https://fridayreflections.typepad.com/weblog/2016/11/integrity.html) on November 24, 2016

Story Line: About two weeks ago, in early night hours we were busy chatting with Oliver, our Godson, who had brought his homemade ice cream for us. Suddenly we heard the doorbell ring. Everyone became silent. While putting on my facemask I asked “Who is it?”  The voice on the other side “…., Your neighbor.” When I opened the door she asked if the car that was parked in the front of our home belonged to someone in our home. It was our Godson’s car. She informed him that when her son was backing up his car, it touched Oliver’s car and had some minor dent. Her son had immediately gone in their house and informed parents. She gave her phone number to Oliver. I told her “Thanks for your honesty” to which she replied “Of course”.

Oliver returned after inspecting his car. He told us that the damage was minor and he wouldn’t have noticed that while leaving in the darkness of the night. He too was very touched with the honesty of our neighbor.

A few days later I saw my neighbor, the father of the young man, and told him how much I appreciated his son’s honesty. He told me that he was very happy that his son had demonstrated their family value.

Reflection: We are blessed to have very good neighbors who have also become close friends. Additionally, my good fortune or what but this is the third time in my life that I have encountered incidences of honesty related to bruises on the car. This latest incidence brought back memories of past incidences and two of the most popular Friday Reflections. In the first case (1997) it was also about a young man and his honesty. The second incidence was about five years ago and the gentleman who bruised our car has become a very close friend. I like to revisit those two wonderful memories. Highly recommend to read the comments of the readers in the two reflections below:

1.The Price of Un (https://fridayreflections.typepad.com/weblog/2012/06/the-price-of-un.html) One of the five stories in the reflection.

In a community college parking lot, a teenage boy that we know left a very small scratch on the car next to his when he opened his car door. No one was around but he still left a note on the scratched car with his name and phone number. Later that evening, the father of the girl who owned that scratched car called. The first thing he said was, “I want to specially thank you for leaving a note even though the scratch is insignificant. I am not sure my daughter would have done the same.” Ultimately, it cost $350 to get the scratch removed. Years later, the same boy’s car was left badly dented in a Union Square parking lot by someone who did not leave a note with his/her phone number. Upon coming home, sad and angry, he asked his father, “ what do I do next time if I scratch or dent someone’s car,” to which the dad replied, “same thing you did the first time.” 

2.Integrity is doing the right thing, even when no one is watching

A few months ago, as my wife and I just buckled up and about to turn on the car, a stranger knocked on the passenger side window. I opened a quarter of the window and looked at the man. In a polite voice he informed us that our back tail light cover was cracked when the mattress he was moving …..Story in the link below

(https://fridayreflections.typepad.com/weblog/2016/11/integrity.html)

Comments

[Childhood Friend]

Same with us in Black Forest but there was A man of Switzerland and we were in Restaurant . His car just to ours but he called the police and they found who’s car is this . They called my son in Law
We saw there was very little mark so we did not do any procedure.
So there r so many honest people.

[FE-Japan]

You’re indeed blessed to have good neighbors, Anand!
Your stories remind me to keep doing the right thing. 😊

[Pulao Penang]

Anand I just read the fridays reflection - honesty stories.....very good !!! Thank you ..

[AN]

As they say, Honesty is the best policy!