I had to leave the sheep farm quickly. The search for a new place to stay began and surprisingly only took a few hours – thanks to many warm-hearted and selfless people.

It was Saturday afternoon when I finally decided to leave the sheep farm in Alberta. The family had left for a weekend break in the morning, left me in their house in the middle of nowhere – with no emergency contact, with the task of feeding the sheep alone this weekend, and pointing out that they were out and about the next weekend as well. If the guard lama had run me over on the pasture no one would have found me until the next day. I admit: that may be a bit exaggerated. Nevertheless, I felt exploited as a free worker. After having suffered from the cold family atmosphere this was the straw that broke the camel’s back.

I needed a new accommodation. The Wwoof Canada website showed me two farms that I found interesting and were somewhat close to my location: one 250 kilometers to the west, another 250 kilometers to the east – compared to Europe, the distances in Canada are just a little different . So there was a message to both – and the answers came promptly. They are still on holiday for a week, but would be happy about my visit after their return, wrote the one. The other potential host, Maryann, responded that she had just left for vacation, but she had acquaintances who also accommodate wwoofers and wanted to ask around. In the very late evening she sent me an e-mail, a name, an e-mail address and the request to get in touch. A family in Red Deer would be happy to host me.

There Couldn’t Have Been A Better Match

That was fast. Sunday morning I sent an e-mail to Nadine, promptly received an answer with the request to give her a quick call. Said and done. Ten minutes and an incredibly funny phone call later I was aware that I had hardly laughed the whole week. And I found a new place to stay. What I didn‘t know at that time was that with Nadine, Guy and their two sons I had found hosts and a farm that couldn’t have been more suitable for me.

I only found out later what Maryann means by “asking around”. Apparently she had already helped one or the other wwoofer from a similar situation. She published a post on Facebook. On that very day, Nadine and Guy did what they usually don’t do: stay awake longer than usual and sit in bed with a laptop to find out what’s new on Facebook. Within minutes they had decided to respond to the post. Two days later they picked me up from the bus station in Edmonton, Alberta. They had been thinking about becoming a Wwoof farm for some time, but they weren‘t sure if they were ready for it. My visit should be an opportunity for them to find out (to anticipate: they are more than ready!).
Maryann felt her job wasn’t done yet. It was about finding out how to get me from the east of Alberta to the south of the province. She set up a WhatsApp group, got her brother in the boat, who would drive to Edmonton that same Monday morning and could take me. For various reasons this didn‘t work out. The effort the two siblings put into a stranger I still find outstanding.

I took a bus to Edmonton. Nadine and Guy picked me up there – and brought me back two weeks later. They drove 1,000 kilometers for me, acted completely selflessly when they decided to have me stay without knowing me. I was incredibly grateful and overwhelmed by this act of kindness – and still am. After the almost three-hour drive it was clear that we couldn‘t have been more in tune. The following two weeks should confirm this again and again.

Trust And Conscious Perception

Unmistakably, the universe has had its fingers in the game here, giving me what I wanted and needed. Everyone and everything were in the right place at the right time. The cold-spirited family off fort he weekend, Maryann on vacation, Nadine and Guy with the laptop in bed. However, it is important to recognize the signs that the universe sends us. Conscious perception, that is to consciously perceive our thoughts and environment, are the key for me. And the confidence that everything will happen as it has to.

Random Acts of Kindness
During my travels I have learned two things:
1. Those who have the least often give the most.
2. There are friendly people everywhere.
There is always a story behind selfless action. It deserves to be told and collected as Random Acts of Kindness.
Inspired by @TheKindnessGuy