A kindhearted boy asked to help their neighbor fix his new mailbox after he accidentally knocked over his old one and broke it.
Five-year-old Crew was left devastated when he accidentally rode his bike into neighbor Dan Meek’s mailbox in Noblesville, Indiana, on September 15.
The wood on the mailbox was rotting, according to Crew’s mom, Claire Taylor, and so they headed to Dan’s home to apologize, explain what happened and offer to buy him a new one.
Despite this resolution, Claire noticed Crew outside their home, still looking visibly upset.
When his mom asked him what was wrong, he said that he thought Mr. Meeks was annoyed at him, and despite Claire’s best efforts to convince him otherwise, Crew’s mood did not improve.
And so, Claire asked her son what would make him feel better, and he said he would like to fix Mr. Meek’s new mailbox himself.
On September 17, Crew and his sibling Finn, who is almost three, headed to their neighbor’s house, along with their father, CJ, who carried his tools.
Crew and Finn had their own children’s tools, too, and over the following hours, they helped remove the old post and replace it with a new one.
Both Claire and Dan captured videos of the progress, with Claire later sharing a video about her kids’ kind gesture on her social media channels.
Claire said: “I was so proud that Crew took the initiative to want to help fix what he broke.
“Obviously, it wasn’t his fault, the mailbox was old and rotted, but he still took responsibility for his mistake.
“He wasn’t able to actually replace it all himself, but I could tell it really did help him work through the emotions he was feeling.
“Dan showed such compassion and kindness, understanding that Crew was sensitive about what happened and wanting to reconcile the relationship while also letting him help.
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“We have received so many kind, encouraging comments from both friends and strangers on the internet about the situation.
“I shared this story in hopes of encouraging others to show compassion and kindness to anyone they interact with.
“You never know the day someone may be having and the impact that your words – kind or unkind – may have on someone’s heart.”