10 People Share Stories That Left a Lasting Mark on Their Lives

Some moments stay with us forever and shape who we are in ways we never expected. We picked 10 stories where people open up about experiences that made a lasting impact on their lives. All of them reveal something that left them changed for good.

1.

I missed my train home due to a crash near the station. I was broke and couldn’t afford another ticket. I was crying on the platform — I’d have to spend Christmas alone and wouldn’t see my sick grandad. A janitor came up to me and brought me some tissues.

He found out why I was so upset and said leave it to me. Took me to the customer service desk and got them to reissue me a ticket for the next train home. I was so thankful I started bawling again and he went on his way. Then just before I was about to get my train he found me on the platform and gave me some snacks and a can of coke and it’s just the nicest thing anyone has ever done for it.

plantlifer / Reddit

2.

I ate at a Mexican restaurant and unknowingly threw away my car keys on my tray when I was done eating. I went and asked a worker if he had cleared them off the table and he said no. He’d just taken the trash out to the dumpster. I remember going outside and calling my dad to ask if there was a spare and he told me no.

I went back inside feeling humiliated to ask if I could look through the dumpster only to see that this man had already dug through the dumpster on my behalf and ended up finding my keys for me. He just went above and beyond. To this day, I’m so grateful for his help.

merztoller / Reddit

3.

Recently my dog slipped her collar (it was three am and I was regrettably too lazy to remove her cone of shame and thunder jacket to put her harness on). She bolted. We couldn’t find her. She’s not the brightest, she’s 90% anxiety and 10% snuggles and she’s 14 pounds. I thought she was gone forever and cried myself to sleep. We would reconvene in the daylight.

At 8:15 the next morning I got a call. She’d been found! A woman was on her morning run and the dog ran right up to her like, “Hello, human, I have made a mistake. Please help.” she took the dog to the vet, got her microchip read, called me, and my puppy was dropped off on her way home from the vet.

The woman has since offered to dog-sit her anytime and has texted to see how she is! This was a wonderful boost for my faith in humanity.

Unknown author / Reddit

4.

A man in a full business suit with a briefcase handed me an umbrella in a torrential rain storm and wouldn’t take no for an answer. I still had to walk through Times Square to get to the train and I’m sure he got soaked going wherever he was going. A couple of weeks later, I gave the umbrella to a lost girl in my neighborhood when it started to rain and she didn’t have one. Felt like the universe wanted it to happen. I’ll never forget that man though.

im_not_bovvered / Reddit

5.

My husband and I were sitting on our porch holding hands and crying because we were waiting to find out if my tumor was cancerous. Our neighbor saw us and about half an hour later he came over with some freshly baked cookies. He didn’t even say anything, just smiled, handed them to us, and then went back home. Just thinking about that moment has me crying again. From his kindness, not the fear. The tumor turned out benign!

Reflection_Secure / Reddit

6.

We were a poor family. My mom had saved up enough to take my sister and me to the zoo and museum. We had a great day and even ate out. Then, on the way to the bus stop heading home, she realized she’d overspent and didn’t have enough to pay for all of us to get there. We were looking at a 6-mile walk, and it had just started snowing.

We duck into a small Chinese restaurant and ask if we can use the phone (Mom was going to ask someone for a ride). The owner asked us why we needed the phone and after Mom explained, he not only gave us the money but also sent us home with enough food to feed 6 people. My mom told him we’d try to pay him back one day, but he asked we pay it forward instead.

hassenoma01 / Reddit

7.

I was at a party when I was about 16, the birthday boy was turning 22, so there was a good range of people my age. There was a guy who stood out like a sore thumb. He looked like he was 45 and came straight from his office job. He was jumping around to the live band and he was having the most fun of anyone there clearly.

Later, I sat with him and tried to politely ask how exactly he fit in here. He told me to stay young. He and his wife always kept up being social and no one his own age liked to go out anymore. I said he was clearly the life of the party. He seemed happy and he told me it was the first time he’d been out since his wife had passed away and he was trying to go extra hard for both of them.

MeddlingKids1126 / Reddit

8.

Pulled up at some lights once and glanced into the car next to me. There was a guy tucking into a massive cheeseburger with a look of pure desire on his face. I was late home and very hungry and he caught me watching him, he just grinned and offered it towards me. It wasn’t a real offer, we were 2 car windows apart but it makes me think about how we’re all just humans and in this together.

icanstopwheneveriwan / Reddit

9.

I was in maybe 4th grade and my parents just had my younger sister, so newborn-focused. I went to my school lunch, opened my paper bag (are those still a thing?), and unwrapped the foil holding my sandwich. There was nothing inside. It was just 2 slices of dry white slice bread and I was sad.

Literally, my table mates all chipped in various components and made me the most amazing ham and cheese sandwich I’ve ever had. I’ve been chasing that dragon of ham sandwich since but I’m sure it was the response and not the ingredients that I loved.

I_Am_The_Grapevine / Reddit

10.

I was standing at the counter of a Taco Bell. I was 21, and the young lady who took my order had to have been 16. She says, “I haven’t seen a dude wearing a nose ring before.” I made a joke saying, “Well, you’re not looking in the right places!” She then just shrugged her shoulders, locked eye contact with me, and replied, “Well. You’re beautiful.” She then walked away, and someone else handed me my food. I still think about that now and again.

mothershipq / Reddit

Some experiences linger long after they happen and leave a lasting impression that’s hard to forget. In this article, people share creepy events that stayed with them for years, haunted their memories, and sparked endless questions.