What’s the nicest thing a stranger has ever said to you?

[Magik01]

Following on from the thread about the strangest thing said, I thought it would be nice to hear some positive stories!

I was at a theme park with DS2 who was about 8 weeks old at the time. We were walking one of the character live shows and he was hungry so I sat and fed him (I’m BFing). A woman came up to me after the show and said “it’s so lovely seeing someone feeding their baby, your doing a really great job.”

It honestly made my day, sometimes it’s the little things!

I had a total stranger ask me if I was ok and wanted to talk, gave me tissues when I was crying my eyes out on an early morning flight. I’ll never forget that gesture

Oh, and my DS's friend thinks I'm the funniest person he knows and tells everyone.

First time experience of breathing feeding my 2/3 week old DD in hospital cafeteria. An older gentleman sat next to me , when my jacket fell off my chair and he picked it up for me and said how lovely it was to BF and how his daughters had breastfed their children. Was such a nice first experience of doing something so new and a bit scary in public.

Not a complete stranger

Post second child I had horrendous pnd, I'd contracted impetigo (was in treatment and check with before attending appt) on my face and was at the osteopath with my baby who didn't sleep or let me put down ever. I was on my knees.

Post treatment the osteopath arranged a cup of tea for me and let me sit and drink it in her warm room whilst she held said baby.

Honestly was the nicest thing. Makes me well up now.

I was sat in a hospital cafe when ds was 3 as we had caught a bus there, it was raining and we were an hour early.
I was trying to keep him busy/quiet before a hospital appointment (nothing too scary- fairly routine) but an old man on the table next to me, before he left came over and said that I was doing a marvellous job with my son, he was such a bonnie well behaved lad and that he was an absolute credit to me.
I nearly cried my eyes out, I really needed that at that moment.

"You've got your dress stuck into your knickers."

I was walking down a busy street in London and a man, mid conversation with a friend, stopped dead and exclaimed "you've got the bluest eyes I've ever seen" and then walked on. Such a boost!

I was caring for my MiL who had Alzheimer’s when a man said “ unbelievably you are as beautiful inside as out.”

I was in a period of my life where I was crippled by anxiety and OCD. I was about to get off train journey where I was nearly at my destination to go all the way back home (5 hours away) to check something that I knew in my heart was fine. But I still felt I needed to go back to check. She heard me crying on the phone about it it my mum and though it must have sounded utterly ridiculous to her, the lady opposite was so kind to me. I don't remember what she said, just that I felt comforted and that she wasn't judging me.

Abroad, answered a question in the local language which I spoke badly. Person replied and I had to ask them to repeat what they'd said more slowly as I hadn't understood. Person said "oh, I thought from your first reply you were local"

@Alonelonelylonersbadidea

Back when my first son was newborn (decades ago), I used to pace the living room with him at my shoulder. Him screaming. Me trying not to cry. For colicky weeks on end. I was a very young single mum, alone in a city where I knew no one.

One day the doorbell rang and there was a lady there with a bunch of flowers. I let her in and she told me how she saw me every day, holding my crying baby, and she wanted me to know that she could see me, that she knew I was exhausted but that this too shall pass and that I was doing a wonderful and hard job breastfeeding.

I had never met this woman before. I sobbed. I put my head on her shoulder and she held me while I cried. She put the flowers in the vase. Made me tea. And left.
I never even knew her name.
Seems dream like now.
I didn't tell her how I'd thought about killing myself and my baby.
That day changed my life.
I'm forever grateful.

What a lovely post. How kind of that lady, it makes me think of how small gestures can mean so much. Great idea for a thread op.

My one is a bit similar in a way, I was a newly single mum, living on the 2nd floor with a 3 and a 2 year old. I used to collect them from nursery and walk up the stairs for the bedtime routine Monday to Friday; it was grim and I was just about holding it together. My DD3 was v unsettled at night time and it usually took around 2 hours to settle her. One evening I met my downstairs neighbour and he helped me to carry the shopping up; sat and amused the kids while I put it away. On his way out he said you are doing a wonderful job. His kindness was just what I needed that day. That weekend my neighbour across the road arrived at my door and handed me a lasagne and a Mac and cheese with some treats for the children. She was an retired social worker and she said she had watched me going in and out working and looking after 2 young kids, she told me that I needed to hang in there; everything would be ok. It meant a lot and years later I'm
Still in touch with her.

A man in pets at home told me today my puppy was beautifully behaved and for a first time dog owner I'm doing an amazing job. I was so chuffed!

Years ago another customer was ghastly to me in a shop queue, when toddler DD was kicking off. An assistant told off the nasty women, told the nasty woman she knew me well as I was in the shop regularly and that I was lovely, Calmed DD down (my hands were full of clothes on hangers) and gave her a biscuit, and told me I was doing a great job. Nasty woman slunk off.

Planet that is very funny 😂

@Cantdoitallperfectly it's amazing isn't it? How we make it through.

Someone said to me once, the days are long but the years are short. How true that really is.
Thanks too for sharing your story.

An old man in the bus who I was chatting to telling me I had a kind face and a lovely smile

@PlanetMJ

Not directly to me, but said about me to my younger brother in a fervent tone of voice by a random bloke in the pub when we were at uni.

"You're PlantMJ's brother aren't you? Tell her I would drag my dick through a mile of broken glass just to wank in her shadow"

DB just said, "err, ok, will do". Never found out who he was

I love all of the stories on this thread but this has made me roar! Such eloquence 🤣

When I was about 12 a boy on the school bus said to me . "You have lovely hair and even your spots suit you " backhanded compliment but meant well .

I’m a nanny and the mug I use at work was a gift from one of my previous families. I broke the handle as I put something next to it in the dishwasher, felt a bit sad, but it is very old. I didn’t have time to do anything with it so just put the handle on the side. Later in the day I went to put something else in the dishwasher and the handle was back on my mug. My boss had spotted it while I was out and glued it back on for me. Still holding a few weeks later.

On an extremely stressful day in the middle of an international house move going wrong, I had to have lunch on my own in a smart hotel with my three children aged 1 to 4. I thought the old man at the next table was giving us dirty looks all the way through, but then as he left he came up to me and said what a credit my children were to me. So lovely and unexpected

I often want to compliment strangers on their appearance or the behaviour of their children but worry I'll look like a complete weirdo

I do have one actually.
There's a woman we see around the estate with her lovely dog
And one day ages ago when we stopped to stroke the dog she told me how lovely I was with My daughter.
It made me feel so good.
Thank you for making this thread and reminding me of this time cos it meant so much to me

I was feeding my 4 week old from a bottle in the park one day (feeling very self conscious that it was a bottle and not breast as I was having major issues, even though it’s irrelevant but it was pumped breast milk) and a woman said “what a beautiful scene, a baby being fed and content “ . I felt like saying “it’s breast milk” at the time and realised how truly unimportant that was right then. It warmed my heart ❤️

We were on holiday in Scarborough a few months back and I was on my own with 2 DD's. We were in a shop buying some drinks when DD2 started asking for a random Koala soft toy. I told her "no" as we'd only come in for drinks. The man Infront of us at the till said "hope you don't mind but I've bought it for her" I was totally gobsmacked. He said "I have a granddaughter that I don't see and they don't understand the word no, it's not their fault so I bought it for her!"

A woman in Bristol recently said to me that I had a beautiful speaking voice and a lovely accent - she was surprised when I said I was from Yorkshire (albeit that I've lived in Scotland and France for some periods of time)! Maybe not the nicest thing anyone's ever said, but it boosted my confidence!