This Letter to the Editor appeared in The Palm Beach Post on March 29, 2020:

Several days ago, while waiting in the checkout line at my local CVS, I noticed a young Asian woman ahead of me was wearing a facial mask.

I asked her where she had bought it. In very soft, hesitant English, she said she needed them for work and had bought a box of them before the coronavirus outbreak. She proceeded to check out and leave the store.

I then checked out and started to leave, when I saw her reentering the store and walking toward me with an envelope in her hand. She said she always kept extra facemasks in the car and offered them to me. It took all my strength to suppress the urge to hug her. Shocked, I profusely thanked her instead.

She was a complete stranger helping another complete stranger. She had no idea that she was not only helping out an elderly person, but one that was also undergoing chemotherapy treatments and needed that extra layer of protection.

It was a beautiful example of human kindness and generosity I’ll never forget and will try to pass it forward.

JY, Delray Beach