Do you believe every person you meet is for a reason? Whether or not you do, sometimes there’s no denying you encountered someone for a reason.
Nikki Ihus has spent many days far away from home, and she doesn’t have any plans of returning until her son, John Henry, is healthier.
For now, Nikki, a new mom, calls Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg, Florida home. Her baby boy was born with congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) and he needed surgery. She traveled to Johns Hopkins, where the survival rate of infants born with CDH is 90 percent.
Recently, Nikki decided to go shopping for some new clothes for John Henry. She took an Uber to a pop-up consignment shop.
Rather than sit in silence during the ride to the store, like many people dream of, Nikki’s driver, Belinda, sensed the new mom needed to decompress.
“She needed to talk and I was there to listen,” Belinda told WFTS. “People don’t listen anymore. I believe people get in my car for a reason other than a ride.”
Belinda dropped Nikki off and Nikki walked into the store, but Belinda didn’t leave. Instead she stuck around, waited a few minutes, and then walked into the store.
“She touched my heart,” she said. “So I parked the car and turned Uber off. I went in and I found her and said, ‘This is a day that should be fun for you. And you shouldn’t be alone. Let’s shop.’”
The two went on a shopping spree and Belinda purchased about 30 pieces of baby clothes for her new friend. Everyone was in awe of Belinda’s generosity, including the store employees who couldn’t believe the Uber driver and new mother had only just met.
“For this stranger to go completely out of her way – stop what she was doing and stop making money – to come be with me for a couple of hours while we shopped together, that was just incredible,” Nikki told WFLA.
And just this week, Belinda visited her new friend and her baby boy at the hospital.
This was such a beautiful thing for Belinda to do for a complete stranger.
Share this if you believe that everyone we meet is for a reason.
