Milk and Cookies

How far can a small act of kindness reach?  Determine for yourself in this touching true story:

Professor Arthur Miles is one of the best heart surgeons in the World. He is a wealthy man who runs a large medical center in the United States which employs a large team of doctors and nurses.

He has a unique story: “My father passed away when I was a young child. My mother never worked before, and Dad was the sole provider. We felt hunger for the first time after he passed away. My mother took various jobs. She worked as a maid and earned a pittance. She tried to support us, and always just barely managed.

One morning when I was ten years old, my mother told me that I have to go to school without food today since the house is completely empty. “When you come back, I promise, I’ll make you a satiating meal.” She gave me the lump of sugar we had at home. “It will help you get through the day,” she said. But the sugar cube only increased my hunger, and during recess, I felt unless I have something to eat I will collapse. Even though I was an excellent student and had never missed a class, I went home from school that day and turned down a side street. I was even ready to pry the gutter to find something to eat.

Suddenly I had an idea, I decided to knock on the door of a house in the area and to ask for a piece of bread. No one knows me around here, I will get the bread and run. The first house I came to had two doors. The right door had a large painting of a scary tiger so I chose the door on the left. There was a small sign that said ‘Maurice Jackson.’ I knocked gently thinking that I would meet Mrs. Jackson, who I imagined to be a large woman with a white apron. My heart was beating wildly as I knocked again. To my surprise, the door was opened by a young girl my age, pale and grinning. She was surprised to see me. “I thought it was the postman,” she said. “And who are you?” She quickly questioned.

“I’m thirsty,” I said feeling ashamed suddenly to ask for bread. Maybe she goes to my school. “Can I please have a glass of water?”

The girl looked at me and said with a smile: “We drink milk in the morning.” She ran to the kitchen and returned with a glass of milk and a small plate of four cookies. “We eat a cookie when we drink milk,” she declared with a charming smile as she handed me the plate. I was stunned. My hands were trembling as I took the plate of cookies and the milk. She introduced herself while I was drinking: “My name is Rosalyn, what’s your name?”

I dodged the question and instead asked “What are you doing home at this hour?”

“I’m sick!” She said. I wished her a speedy recovery as I swallowed the fourth cookie and quickly run back to school without saying my name.

Years passed. I graduated with honors and received a scholarship of excellence fund which I used to study medicine. I excelled in that as well and eventually opened a large medical center. Today I am a famous heart surgeon. I have a wonderful wife, who is also a doctor, and our three children. Whenever new patients arrive at my medical center, they first undergo extensive testing by the medical staff who formulates an opinion for appropriate treatment. They then present the case before me for review and approval. One morning I arrived at my office, and there on the table I saw a new medical record. Written at the top in black ink I saw the name ‘Rosalyn Jackson’. Bells rang in my head. After all these years, I have never forgotten the kind girl who helped satiate my hunger. I walked to her bed, and saw her lying pale, connected to a respirator.

“Where are you from?” I asked her. She mentioned the name of the residential neighborhood where I grew up. “What is your father’s name?” I continued to question.

“Maurice Jackson,” she responded faintly. A faint smile broke on her face that reminded me of the smile I had seen that morning.

“I’ll take care of it!” I told the stunned crew who had never seen me do anything like this before. Roslyn became my private patient. I took care of all her needs. I made sure she received the top surgeons and asked the nurses to never leave her bedside and make sure to always take care of all her needs. I told them to call me at any hour of the day if necessary. When Rosalyn healed, she asked for the bill and received a detailed account of the costs which summed up to $53,000. But at the bottom line was written “paid 50 years ago with a glass of milk and four yummy cookies.”

King Solomon teaches: “Cast your bread upon the waters, for you shall find it after many days” (Kohelet 11:1). You invest in one place. You do a good deed at one end of the Earth, and Hashem (G-d) will direct the result back to you. Do not hesitate or think twice. Do a good deed every day!