Alfie Stewart and his family had the lovely experience of a stranger paying for their meal at a McDonald's drive though and all because Alfie had been courteous to another driver.
Alfie, his wife Ruth-Anne and stepson Alex (10) were on their way from their Magherafelt home to the north coast to enjoy the evening sun when they stopped at McDonald's in Coleraine.
They were in the queue at the drive through, looking forward to a fast food fix - two McChicken meals and a kid's meal to be precise - when Alfie interacted with another driver.
"I looked across at the other lane and a young man, probably in his twenties, gestured for me to go first into the queue for payment and collection," Alfie explained.
"I immediately responded by gesturing likewise and giving him a thumbs up to feel free to go first. He waved and returned the thumbs up and off he went."
Alfie noticed that the other driver used the contactless payment machine twice but thought nothing more of it, until he reached the cashier who told him that his order had already been paid for.
Alfie was so touched by the kindness that he tried to catch up with the stranger to thank him but, in his haste, forgot about his food order and had to put the car into reverse to collect it, by which time the other driver was well and truly gone.
"Taken aback, surprised, shocked, bewildered, bemused, flabbergasted are feelings that all spring to mind when we realised exactly what had happened.
"I tried over and over again to picture the young man's face, which I had seen for a brief moment, wondering if I should have known him, but to no avail.
"We sat eating our meals with an incredible amount of headshaking in disbelief at this simple but profound act of kindness because I had shown just the smallest hint of patience in an everyday situation in a queue of traffic."
Alfie said nothing like this has ever happened to him before but "it taught me that the secret, silent, kind acts are vital in touching lives for the better".
This is the second such story from a branch of McDonald'. Last year Francis Sands had the same experience at a McDonalds in Newry although on that occasion he had had no interaction with the customer who paid for his meal.
Aren't people great?
Share your random act of kindness story by emailing m.connolly@irishnews.com
Read more random acts of kindness:
- Thank you to a 'stubborn and sassy' Value Cabs taxi driver
- Random act of kindness at Foyleside Shopping Centre
