To the stranger currently onboard Quantum....

[fuzzmane]

I'm not sure who you are. Actually, I don't even know if you read Cruise Critic. What I do know is that I feel the need to acknowledge what an amazing person you are.

 

I first met you in line at the Next Cruise desk. We were both standing in the "no-appointment" line to book our next cruise. My two daughters were with me. You noticed my four year old had seashells and asked to see them. She was shy at first, but eventually she opened up and you looked through all her shells, even the broken little bits. You managed to entertain her until it was time for us to talk to someone.

 

Now, this was a miracle in itself, being this is a longer cruise there's not too many kids on board. And most don't acknowledge my daughter at all. So thank you for noticing her.

 

But then, last night in the theater she was tired, cranky, and upset but sitting in the same row as you. You noticed her and got up from your seat to come down and talk to her - and ask her if she found any more shells. She smiled and chatted with you about the shells she found in St. Maarten. It made her smile and settle down and that was the turning point for her that night - she wasn't freaking out anymore and watched the show.

 

But, what you don't know - is at that particular moment I was at wits end. My kids were all misbehaving in some way, I had cried and cried not too long ago realizing that it had been stupid of me to attempt this trip without my husband. I found out my son charged $50 on my seapass without permission (oh and lied about it). I had just wanted to disembark and go home. I had just been at guest services trying to figure out how to do this. Her freaking out in the theater was just the icing on the cake. Of course I wasn't upset at her - she's a toddler who spend the whole day in the sun. I was tired too. It was just an overwhelming day.

 

But the way you were so kind and patient with her, and she responded to you. She was attempting to make plans to meet you on the ship to show you the new shells - and you were interested in what she had to say. It gave me a new hope, and was the turning point of my really crappy day.

 

I have tears in my eyes as I write this. I don't know if you'll ever read this - but I want to say Thank-You. You probably don't even realize that you had one anything extraordinary, but your seemingly small acts of kindness touched really touched me and my family. Thank you, random lady on board Quantum for being such an amazing person.

 

This link has been posted to his live review of the cruise, so yes he will see this. Glad things are going better now. Enjoy the rest of your cruise.

[LovesCruising]

And how wonderful of YOU OP to post such a heartwarming story - I hope your stranger see's it.

[onyourtoes]

I can't even imagine what I would do if this happened to me. :eek:

 

Get him a job application:D

[BugsyCruiser]

Glad to see there are still some good people in this world. Such a simple act of kindness can go a long way

Edited April 18, 2015 by Bugsy4271

[BugsyCruiser]

This link has been posted to his live review of the cruise, so yes he will see this. Glad things are going better now. Enjoy the rest of your cruise.

Sorry but I'm not the stranger. Glad this person helped her out though :)

 

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note 4 using Tapatalk

[fuzzmane]

Sounds like something you would have done.

[jmrothermel]

Wow, I'm being selfish but I really needed to read this today. My husband has been traveling for work for 8 weeks now, home for very little time within that time frame, but we haven't seen him in person (we face time every night) for 2 weeks now, he won't be home for at least another week, and the traveling is new to us. Plus my Dad had a stroke last week while we were there for Spring Break, and I never really allowed myself to cry about it because I wanted to be strong for my Mom and in front of my kids (fortunately it was a mild stroke and only some memory seems to be affected, so we are sooooo lucky, he has all of his speech, vision, and movement back). I think I just hit my breaking point this morning with my 3 kids, ages 10, 10, and 12. I just totally blew up at them and then went into my room and had a crying fit.

 

Then I come on here and see this. Nice to know that I'm not the only one who lets this stuff get to them (so I'm not completely crazy and a horrible mom), and even nicer to know that there are such pleasant people out there. Thanks for taking the time to post. I know your post was for the person who was so sweet to your daughter, but it really meant a lot to other people as well.

 

 

I can't even imagine what you are going through - my problems seem trivial to yours! I'm glad your husband is recovering well. You are a STRONG person! Everyone needs a good cry sometimes, and you're not a horrible mom for it. Big (((((HUGS)))))!

 

I thought I remembered there was a way Guest Relations could set up a child's seapass without charging purposes, it might be worth checking out. While the kindness of strangers is awesome and a wonderful story, would help as well.

 

 

 

Roy

 

 

Oh, believe you me, they were all deactivated after that! The worst part is I insisted that they investigate using the video camera and whatnot - only to find out it was my own son lying to me [emoji21]

[erby2283]

Thank you for sharing your post.

 

I often go out of my way to get a store manager who write an email when I get exceptional service or someone has gone out of their way for me. My father taught me at an early age (he was a teacher) that it's nice when people go out of their way to praise the good people do instead of just complaining about all the bad service.

 

Your post brought tears to my eyes...and I don't even have kids...lol. I could just feel how overwhelmed you were and the sincerity of your post!

 

Hope you can enjoy the rest of your cruise!

[Langley Cruisers]

"Forget not to show love unto strangers: thereby some have entertained angels unawares."

 

That's a beautiful quote!

 

That is from the Bible, Hebrews 13:2. :)

.

[splash_in_the_water]

Thanks for sharing - it's nice to see how seemingly simple acts can mean so much to someone. Kudos to the "stranger" for caring about you and your family. Wishing you all the best.

 

Indeed, that is a nice story. It seems these days we look at everyone as a stranger , don't look, don't talk to them, etc.....Really though, very few people have any ill intentions at all, and this nice lady proved that. The world really is full of great people, we're just usually too busy looking at our shoes to notice.

[lalenalei]

Even if he never sees this, you are putting out good energy and karma into the universe. Always a positive thing! :)

[aloha43]

what an awesome post! I was just thinking that the rc board is depressing to read this morning, then i read this. Thanks, and i hope you have a great time the rest of the way!

 

ditto!!:d

[NorthCarolinaBelle]

thank you for writing this post! I love to speak to children, and especially if they seem to be driving their parents nutty, just to distract them and give the parents a moment to catch their breath! Sometimes I've wondered if I shouldn't, but your post sounds like it's okay! I'm so glad that nice person was there for you not one, but two times!:)

[GUT2407]

Wonderful to hear, sorry so many others have ignored your little ones, I love kids and usually prefer talking to them than adults.

[4boysnana]

The kind stranger might never read how she touched your family but we can all honor her kindness by helping that tired mother when we see them. It might be an elderly neighbor or me at the store in my scooter and I can't reach that bargain on an upper shelf.

That moment of kindness can influence us for a long time and even like this moment it can influence others like dominoes falling. A smile and a kind hand can evaporate some sorrow.

We are so lucky to be able to travel and to be able to communicate across the world. Thanks to the OP for sharing. I hope the stranger reads your post but I have a feeling she is a happy fulfilled person at peace with the world.

 

Happy travels to all

 

4boysnana

[Cruising_Tiger]

[quote name='jmrothermel']I'm not sure who you are. Actually, I don't even know if you read Cruise Critic. What I do know is that I feel the need to acknowledge what an amazing person you are.

I first met you in line at the Next Cruise desk. We were both standing in the "no-appointment" line to book our next cruise. My two daughters were with me. You noticed my four year old had seashells and asked to see them. She was shy at first, but eventually she opened up and you looked through all her shells, even the broken little bits. You managed to entertain her until it was time for us to talk to someone.

Now, this was a miracle in itself, being this is a longer cruise there's not too many kids on board. And most don't acknowledge my daughter at all. So thank you for noticing her.

But then, last night in the theater she was tired, cranky, and upset but sitting in the same row as you. You noticed her and got up from your seat to come down and talk to her - and ask her if she found any more shells. She smiled and chatted with you about the shells she found in St. Maarten. It made her smile and settle down and that was the turning point for her that night - she wasn't freaking out anymore and watched the show.

But, what you don't know - is at that particular moment I was at wits end. My kids were all misbehaving in some way, I had cried and cried not too long ago realizing that it had been stupid of me to attempt this trip without my husband. I found out my son charged $50 on my seapass without permission (oh and lied about it). I had just wanted to disembark and go home. I had just been at guest services trying to figure out how to do this. Her freaking out in the theater was just the icing on the cake. Of course I wasn't upset at her - she's a toddler who spend the whole day in the sun. I was tired too. It was just an overwhelming day.

But the way you were so kind and patient with her, and she responded to you. She was attempting to make plans to meet you on the ship to show you the new shells - and you were interested in what she had to say. It gave me a new hope, and was the turning point of my really crappy day.

I have tears in my eyes as I write this. I don't know if you'll ever read this - but I want to say Thank-You. You probably don't even realize that you had one anything extraordinary, but your seemingly small acts of kindness touched really touched me and my family. Thank you, random lady on board Quantum for being such an amazing person.[/QUOTE]



I'm glad that this stranger happened to be in the right place at the right time, but there is no way this person is on CC. Most on CC would complain about your toddler acting up and would demand that all of your kids have appropriate formal wear.

I wish you better luck on your next cruise

[FunCruisinFamily]

Thank you for posting this. I know how hard it is sometimes with toddlers. My husband and I just adopted two year old twins. Temper tantrums are common right now. Reading your post made me happy to know someone was there in your time of need. I know what it feels like to be at your wits end and how frustrating it is because you don't want others judging you or you don't want to disturb people. I hope the rest of your cruise is beautiful.

[NorthCarolinaBelle]

[quote name='FunCruisinFamily']Thank you for posting this. I know how hard it is sometimes with toddlers. My husband and I just adopted two year old twins. Temper tantrums are common right now. Reading your post made me happy to know someone was there in your time of need. I know what it feels like to be at your wits end and how frustrating it is because you don't want others judging you or you don't want to disturb people. I hope the rest of your cruise is beautiful.[/quote]
FunCruisinFamily, I just said a prayer for you and your husband. Bless you, bless you for adopting these precious children! Don't worry about others' reaction to your kiddos' tantrums, just ignore the stares and concentrate on keeping your cool! This too, shall pass.:)

[Natmom]

What a wonderful story. I remember being at my wits end many times!

[mickev99]

[quote name='FunCruisinFamily']Thank you for posting this. I know how hard it is sometimes with toddlers. My husband and I just adopted two year old twins. Temper tantrums are common right now. Reading your post made me happy to know someone was there in your time of need. I know what it feels like to be at your wits end and how frustrating it is because you don't want others judging you or you don't want to disturb people. I hope the rest of your cruise is beautiful.[/quote]


Just wanted to give you a glimpse of the future...I have twins and my oldest was 19 months at the time they were born. I often say I cried a lot that first year, it was tough, no family living close to help out...then going through terrible twos and threes! My oldest is now 12 and my twins are 10 1/2....trust me it gets better!! I suggest joining a mom's club of multiples if there is one close to you. It totally helped me keep my sanity...no one truly understands what it's like to have multiples than other parents of multiples. Hang in there!! And congrats on the adoption!!

[gaylemh]

I would talk to the person at the next cruise desk, she/he may be able to get a thank you note to the person that was so kind to you. If the person booked a cruise right after you, they should be able to find out who it was. They wouldn't give you that information, but they may be able to pass along a note.

[Bevv]

[quote name='jmrothermel']I'm not sure who you are. Actually, I don't even know if you read Cruise Critic. What I do know is that I feel the need to acknowledge what an amazing person you are.
[/quote]
When I was on the Navigator there was bulletin board for passengers to share information. If you have that on your ship, you can write an abbreviated version of this as a thank you there. Possibly your kind stranger will read it.

[Setting sail for fun]

Very sweet - sounds like a Grandmother! We notice all the little children!

[jmrothermel]

[quote name='gaylemh']I would talk to the person at the next cruise desk, she/he may be able to get a thank you note to the person that was so kind to you. If the person booked a cruise right after you, they should be able to find out who it was. They wouldn't give you that information, but they may be able to pass along a note.[/QUOTE]


This is a great idea! I will ask the lady if she remembers.

Posting on the bulletin board is also a great idea. I'll see if Quantum has one. I haven't noticed it yet - but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist [emoji23]

[gaylemh]

If the cruise director has any kind of daily show, you could also ask him to mention something.