Pay It Forward

"Maggie, I think he hurt his leg again!" My friend called to tell me she was on her way to the emergency vet clinic because her senior dog had come up on three legs. Last fall he broke the leg and it took quite awhile for it to heal. It would be an hours drive, so she carefully loaded him up and started off. About halfway there, he jumped to the back seat to look out the window, and the leg seemed better. By the time they got to the clinic, he was limping, but using the leg. As they sat in the waiting area, he kept moving around with continued improvement in the leg, so she decided to forego the vet visit, save the money, and take him home.

As she was getting ready to leave, she noticed a lady crying at the front desk. She observed for a few minutes and then asked the receptionist if she could offer comfort, thinking that the woman was having to decide on euthanasia for her pet. The receptionist looked at her like it was none of her business. She asked if it was a case of putting the pet down, and the receptionist again gave her a "don't ask me" look. Finally she asked if it was a financial problem or should she butt out, as she knew the clinic had a fund for people in this situation - and they could tap that. The receptionist said that they were trying to work that out, but that collateral would have to be put up and there was a limit on the amount available. With that, my friend addressed the woman directly. Her husband had lost his job, was on unemployment, and there was no extra to cover these expenses. My friend pulled out her credit card and had the clinic charge the expenses to treat the dog for heat stroke. She said the receptionist looked at her with disbelief. She said that at that moment she couldn't believe what she was saying either. Then she told the receptionist that her senior dog who was on three legs and now was walking and jumping around on all four, would not need to be seen - at least not at that time!

The woman with the dog suffering from heat stroke thanked her many many times. No names were exchanged. My friend simply told her to "pay it forward", which she vowed to do.

My friend said she won't tell her family or relatives because they think she gives too much away, but her father told her "if what you give away makes the difference for someone else, it will be worth whatever sacrifices you have made", and she realizes more and more how true those words are.

It was part of a plan - the dog limped, and ended up saving another animal in distress. As for me, I needed this uplifting story and had just asked for something with positive energy.