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Back in the year 2006, I made a trip to the Australian capital for an admissions interview for medical school. I assumed to arrange accommodation upon arrival, yet once I got there, a major event was in town and every single youth hostels and budget accommodation had no vacancies.

As a visitor from Singapore, the idea crossed my mind the possibility of just sleep at the terminal – but soon learned the local airport, unlike Singapore’s, is not open all night. Unsure of how to proceed and feeling increasingly desperate, I hopped on a bus into town and started wandering towards the casino, thinking I might spend those hours in an establishment that stayed open 24/7. This was not ideal in the ideal condition to succeed at an interview the next day, but as a broke student, a pricey hotel was out of reach.

The world needs more folks like that woman.

I must have looked out of place since a woman spotted me wandering around the city center and asked if I was OK. I recounted my predicament and without hesitation she suggested I could crash on the floor at her university residence at the local university – an ideal turn of events, given that my the important interview was scheduled for the next day. She even offered a meal: one sandwiches she brought back her evening job. This gave me warm shower facilities and a protected spot and secure for the evening.

With hindsight, I can appreciate what a big chance she undertook being a woman letting a man she’d just met stay in her room. Back then I existed within my own unawareness and was oblivious about things like that. Now, as a father, I’m amazed she offered that help – yet incredibly thankful.

Ultimately, I did not study at that university, and I never saw that kind stranger again, but I’ve never forgotten that incredible gesture of human compassion. My sincere desire is that the universe has rewarded her act of kindness tenfold. We could all use more individuals who show such kindness.