Hats Off to the Trashman!

Human nature can be a funny thing.

All too often, we get caught up in the snarky habit of trying to be clever or funny, of trying to "one up" another person or to appear the ultimate martyr because of the horrible situations we may have to endure... our poor health, rambunctious children or rotten job, the asteroid that just wiped out our planet… or whatever the case may be.

To pause and recognize the goodness in the people around us is something that we should be doing multiple times a day, yet I know that I don't stop to recognize these things often enough.

Yesterday, our trash man never showed.

Around here, we rarely remember to put the trash out more than about once a month. Frequently we just don't have very much trash, but this past week the raccoons decided to have a hey day with the bit that we did. They tipped the can over and spread trash everywhere, making it a dreadful chore to clean up (Thank You, Kamaron!).

Eventually, Kamaron even took the trash out to the road. This is Kirk's chore, but since he is rarely here on trash day (yet another reason the trash isn’t often taken out), Kamaron very kindly took it to the appointed pick up place next to the mailbox.

There was a little plastic bag from the store that was sitting on top of the pile and each time that we came outside, the breeze had caught that little bag, allowing it to escape from the rest of that smelly trash. In the bag's defense, it was clean and didn't smell at all and I can understand why it wouldn't necessarily want to be associated with the rest of the trash, but we have recycled about 2,001 times more plastic bags than we will ever find use for, so this one ended up in the trash.

Now, before you start… Yes, to all of you who are more conservation minded than me. I know, I need to make permanent grocery bags out of recycled cloth to haul my groceries home, and someday I will, but for now I'm going off the concept of "carbon credits". In my defense, I have successfully grown hundreds of new trees this year, giving life and oxygen to the planet! But I digress...

In the beginning, when we forgot to put the trash out, our trash man was so kind that he would back his truck down our very looooooonnnnng driveway to come get our cans for us.

Wow! Nice!

However, being that we were pretty chronic in forgetting to put them out, this extra-mile service didn't go on forever. Still, I was pretty impressed at his thoughtfulness. Mind you, our trash man is not a perfect guy; in fact, he is full of funny and quirky idiosyncrasies, but this blog isn't about those things, it's about what happened early this morning.

Last night, our trash can spent a very lonely existence all by itself out at the road. On top of that, a strong wind began to blow... a very strong wind. I had asked Kam to bring the trash back in last night, but he forgot... as we all sometimes do, and that strong wind blew the trash can over.

Remember that hoity-toity store bag that was too good for the rest of the trash? Yes, it blew out too, as FAR AWAY from the can as it could get. In fact, it blew clear through the fence and into the yard.

Early this morning, as I was lying in bed, trying to wake up, I heard the trash truck coming down the road. We live in an area of rolling prairie with hills and valleys where the sounds echo so effectively that you can often hear a car from more than a mile away. School busses and trash trucks carry even farther. I flew to the window wondering if Kam had brought the can in and instead discovered the grim truth.

Out of curiosity, I stayed at the window to see what the trash man would do. Would he give it one glance and drive on? Would he stop to right the can and empty what was left in it? Would he stop, take one look at the mess and then get back in the truck and send us a note instructing us on better use of trashcan lids?

Since there wasn't anywhere near enough time to get dressed and run clear out to the scene of nature's crime, I sat perched at the window and waited the last 40 seconds or so for the truck to arrive.

He pulled up to the house and began to slow.

Then he passed the mailbox...

"He's going to keep going," I thought to myself.

Then he stopped!

He was all alone. The assistant, who normally gets the trash while he drives the truck, wasn't there at all.

Our trash man got out of the truck and stood, looking at that pile of trash, for only a moment before he righted the can and emptied it into the back of the truck. Yep. It was all that I would have expected out of any trash service.

Then, he brought the can back and, instead of flinging the can into the ditch, as he usually does, he set it down on its side at the original spot!

Bending over, he scooped all the trash around the area BACK into the can... and emptied it again.

THEN HE CAME BACK AGAIN!!

He collected a few more pieces of trash and even reached clear through the fence to retrieve that high and mighty shopping bag, thus cleaning up every single item of trash in the area!

Never, in my life, have I known a trash collector to go to such efforts to do his job... especially being alone, behind schedule and, for whatever reason, lacking his normal support!

I am impressed!

Today, I will write him a thank you note for doing such a great job... and the next time he brags about how his house in the biggest and nicest one in town, or complains about how our gravel road made his truck dirty, I will listen and smile kindly... I may even agree with him.

The bottom line is that he threw a proverbial pebble of kindness into the still waters of life this morning, causing a ripple of gladness that made me smile with sublime surprise.

That one act not only made me happy, it made my day(!) and filled me with the desire to be kind to another person in return.

I think I’ll call my mom to say hi.

I may even give Kamaron a break on a few of the hours he’s behind in his school work.

Maybe I should give the last of our oats to the horses.

I should send a donation to whatever organization encourages world peace!

And so the world turns... kindness begets kindness… it is a happier day than it might have been… and all from one act of smelly kindness.

So, hats off to our trash man!

“May the road rise up to meet you and the wind ever be at your back.”