Despite how simple they may appear, being kind to others and acting with integrity, honesty, and humility are fundamental parts of the human condition.
We all have the capacity to take on positive activities that will improve our lives in some way, whether they are deeds that help the environment or other people. An individual’s life can be significantly impacted by a small act of kindness.
And despite stories of “bad” police officers, one cop is keeping the hope alive that many good ones still exist. Police practices have been scrutinized a great deal over the past year, but a cop captured on a heartwarming is generating quite the positive buzz.
A mother in Alabama who had an officer go above and beyond the line of duty shared her experience.
By doing something equally beneficial for this mother—mowing her lawn—rather than by taking a bullet for her or shielding her from an attacker. Of course, the narrative goes further than that.
Rachel Brindley, a mother to a four-month-old, and a resident of Harvest, Alabama, had just returned from vacation with her family when her husband was called to work.
Brindley wanted to help her husband, according to her, “He has been working hard on a work project and hasn’t had time to cut [the grass]. It was a nice day out so I thought I’d help my husband out and cut it myself.”
“He works hard so I can be a stay at home mom, and I actually enjoy mowing,” she said.“I’m not one to just sit around.”
Rachael and Ryan Brindley with their kids
But raising a young child while staying at home is challenging, she carried her four-month-old in her front-facing baby carrier because she was unable to leave him unattended. Out in the yard, the stay-at-home set her sights on the lawn and began mowing. Not the best scenario, would you say?
So when a police cruiser arrived next to the mother’s property, she became a little concerned.
She was in the middle of cutting the grass when a patrol car from the Madison County Sheriff’s office pulled up outside her house, and a deputy got out, and as he walked toward mom and child, Brindley started to worry that he was going to reprimand her for having her baby with her as she mowed.
However, the policeman wasn’t there to stir any trouble. In fact, he was only there to perform the public service duties that are expected of police officers. He insisted on mowing her lawn for her!
The Madison County Sheriff’s deputy really highlights the “serve” in “serve and protect.” Of course, the mother was touched by the unexpected surprise.
In her subsequent Facebook post, Rachel shared the deputy’s kindness: “Y’all I thought I was about to get in trouble or something for baby wearing while mowing. But this sweet deputy stopped and kept on moving my yard for me!”
Brindley was moved by the officer’s generosity and took a few pictures of him in action. He requested Brindley not to share her excitement with the public since he wanted to remain unknown, but she just couldn’t help herself.
Meanwhile, Brindley’s husband, Ryan said,“I can’t express enough of my gratitude for this man-in-blue. It’s small in nature, but was a huge help to my wife today. I’m sure, from what we gather from people who know him, this is just an everyday thing for him. He basically does something like this every day.”
The Madison County Sheriff’s Office announced on their official Twitter account that the deputy was one of their own and shared a photo of Rachel with the caption:“MCSO Deputy helping a new Mom with a baby by mowing her grass. She was very grateful for going above and above the call of duty.”
“You get a lot more stuff done out of the car—and I’m not necessarily meaning yard work—but…sometimes the car’s a barrier to the public and we encourage our deputies to step outside and make some encounters with the community other than being called to a scene,” the anonymous police officer said.
We do not know whether this officer was on duty or not. He might have been on his way home from his shift. But on the other hand, mowing someone’s lawn is something beyond.
Well, truer words have seldom been spoken, I suppose. It’s critical to keep in mind that the cops are working for us. When we observe a deputy volunteering his time to assist someone we don’t even know, we should be inspired to follow in their footsteps whenever we have the chance to lend a hand.
