Editor:
We are compelled by a strong sense of justice to make everyone aware of the way we are wronged, either personally or by someone providing a service; doing so by whatever means.
What if our sense of appreciation were as strong when we were “righted?” What if that triggered as strong a compulsion to share with an experience of having been treated with extra kindness, perhaps even tenderness, dignity and respect? What would the ramifications be? Would day-to-day heartfelt kindness grow within our society, perhaps making it the responsive norm?
It is especially the vulnerable, the weak, the sick, the lost who are impacted most greatly by the professional who puts forth the effort to include a tenderness along with respect to those with whom we interact.
We live in a small town. The way each individual is treated has impact.
I thought about this after I had struggled to get my dog to and then through a veterinary appointment here in Sweet Home. I have a physical limitation and it takes literally every bit of concentration to get myself anywhere. Turns out I hadn’t brought enough cash to the veterinarian office to cover the appointment and the medicine my dog needed, so now I had to go to the bank and then return to the veterinary clinic.
Even the thought of this immediately became an insurmountable task. I teared up with anxiety about having to navigate the few blocks and then return with the cash. It was already a difficult day as I had lost my debit card.
I was deeply touched by the kindness and gentleness shown by the veterinary assistant, Laura Plattner – not just towards my dog, but towards me. This woman was so incredibly patient with both of us.
She had genuinely smiled at me when I had hovered over my dog, like a paranoid mother of a newborn infant, but now she went beyond her professional services. Upon me tearing up by the thought of going to my bank and then returning to the clinic, she respectfully helped me get myself oriented. She didn’t question that my “movement disorder” also causes location challenges.
She simply was kind and helpful in a respectful manner keeping my dignity intact. She doesn’t know about the illness I manage day to day; but it became obvious she does know about human decency; the basics of respect and the power of kindness. It is those qualities she has intertwined with the professionalism she demonstrated in doing her job.
After I got home I thought about how I had been treated. If it were as intensely of a negative experience, I would be livid and sharing the experience as a warning to others; but it was an amazing experience of having been shown kindness and I wanted to share the act. So I am not promoting a business.
I am not promoting a particular veterinarian office or even an individual person. I am profoundly stating if we want more of what this woman demonstrated today in our lives, then we need to praise it and become it. Be compelled to thank those who show kindness to you and talk about the experience, whether it be in your personal life or your professional interactions. Maybe with shared appreciation and emphasis a general kindness will return as the cultural norm.
Today it was Laura Plattner, the veterinary assistant who provided a good example regarding the treatment of another and it mattered. Tomorrow it’s one of us.
Jenny Klassen
Sweet Home