Weekend Story-Kindness Repaid

Once upon a time, a poor boy tried to pay his way through school by selling things door to door. Unfortunately, business was slack, and he was bankrupt and hungry.

Putting aside his discomfort, he mustered the courage to knock on the neighbor’s door to ask for some food to eat. A lovely young lady opened to check who was knocking at the door. Seeing the lovely lady in front of him, the boy was embarrased. Instead of asking for food, he asked for a glass of water.

The lovely lady, however, sensed that the boy was hungry and brought him a large glass of milk. Grateful, the boy drank the milk slowly and asked, ” How much do I owe you for the glass of milk?”

Smiling gently, the young lady responded, “You don’t owe me anything. My mother taught me never to accept payment for kindness.”

“You are so kind. I thank you from my heart,” the boy said.

The boy’s name was Howard Kelly. As he left that house, somehow, the kind act of the lovely lady had lifted his spirits. Despondency was replaced by a faith that all would be good.

Years later, the same lady fell critically ill, and local doctors couldn’t figure out what to do. The lady was shifted to a super specialty hospital in the city, and Dr.Howard Kelly was called in for consultation. The moment he entered the room, Dr.Kelly realized who she was. After a preliminary check, he went back to his chambers, determined to do his best to save her life. He assembled a group of specialists to operate on the lady, and after a complicated surgery, the lady survived. 

Emerging from the operating room, Dr. Kelly asked the hospital’s billing department to send him the final bill for approval. After reviewing it, he jotted down something on the bill and sent it to the patient’s room.

The lady realized the treatment was costly and would wipe out all her life savings to repay. With trembling hands, she opened the envelope, dreading the cost she would have to fork out to cover the surgery and treatment.

What she saw in the paper she held in her hand was a bill with a handwritten message-

“Paid in full with one glass of milk.

(Signed) Dr. Howard Kelly.”