My parents were ‘trail angels’ making their way into the 100 mile wilderness to bring special treats to the group I was hiking with.

Hiking the Appalachian Trail is an experience that will remind you there are lots of good people in this world. “Trail Magic” is the term used for random acts of kindness that were done along the trail. ‘Magic’ was the little things, like the time I came across a bunch of grape sodas that had been left in a cold mountain stream. Or the couple that baked cookies every day and walked a 6 mile round trip to a nearby shelter to feed the hikers. Random acts of kindness and help abounded.

There were things that I did on the trail that I wouldn’t do anywhere else. Hitchhiking is one of those things. Most of my food was mailed from home and held at a Post Office where I could show my driver’s license to pick it up. Many times, town would be 5 to 10 miles from where the trail crossed the road. Instead of spending all day walking to town and back, hikers would often hitchhike with locals who knew what was going on.

I met some of the nicest people who stopped to give a dirty hiker a lift into town. Many times they were headed to town to run errands and offered to take me back out to the trail after they were done with their errands. There were also offers of home cooked meals, places to stay, etc. People were amazingly generous to the hikers who were passing through. The people who did these kind deeds were called “trail angels.”

While hiking I tried to make it to church on Sunday mornings. Fellow Christians went out of their way to help make this happen. There was Jim C. who came out early one morning to meet me at a trail crossing along the Blue Ridge Parkway. He let me take a shower, washed my clothes for me, then fed me breakfast at the table with his family. There was the preacher in Virginia who took me into his home with his family and helped me run some errands. It was really nice to have Christian brothers and sisters who were willing to help.

Even Palmerton, PA shared some ‘magic’ letting hikers stay in the basement of an old jail.

We could all use a little ‘magic’ or kindness in our day to day lives. Maybe it is little things like holding a door for someone or letting another person go in front of us in line. Other times it may be bigger things like helping people in tough situations or when they are facing serious challenges. Many times when people need help they won’t ask for it, so you might have to volunteer.

It seems our society is becoming fixated on moochers. I won’t deny that there are some people who take advantage of generosity and the various welfare programs that are out there. But that is no reason for us to stop helping people. There are people out there who legitimately need a little help, some assistance to get back on their feet, a little ‘magic.’

The current events in Boston are definitely bringing out the best in people. A Facebook friend posted Stephen Colbert’s tribute to Boston, which pointed this out. “Here’s what these cowards really don’t get. They attacked the Boston marathon,” Colbert said. “An event celebrating people who run 26 miles on their day off until their nipples are raw…for fun.” He went on to reference the runners who finished the marathon and then continued to run to the hospital to donate blood. “Here’s what I know. These maniacs may have tried to make life bad for the people of Boston, but all they can ever do is show just how good those people are.”

Go out and make some ‘magic’ in the world today!

Today’s post is a continuation of the “Lessons From the Trail” series.  Last week’s post in the series – “Nine Years Ago Today…” was amazingly popular with readers of this site.

Bonus: Want to see Palmerton, PA and the old jail basement.  I found this video from a 2012 thru-hike on YouTube.