I’m 17 and newly in university when I join a volunteer theater group, and at first I think it’s going great. One of the directors even invites me to the regional convention, when it usually takes two or three years to be invited. Then we get there, and I realize that the director brought me along as a scapegoat.

She insists that I overstepped my bounds and invited myself along, she spreads rumors about me, she convinces the rest of the group that she heard me making racist comments, and generally does everything she can to make me miserable. I can’t say anything without coming off as whiny or lying, since I just joined, and she’s been a respected member of the group for years.

I’ve always had social anxiety problems, and coupled with the fact that we’re two states away and I don’t have a way home besides a guy who gave me a ride and now thinks I’m a racist scumbag, it’s a nightmare.

It is halfway through the second day, and things are bad enough that I am contemplating hitchhiking home, no matter what happened, when one of the girls in the group, who I’ve never really talked to before, comes over. She hands me a drink and tells me, “Ignore those jerks. I haven’t heard anything from you other than you being friendly and shy, and I think you’re pretty okay.” She stays close to me through the rest of the weekend and makes sure I have a way to get home, and she is pretty much the only reason I got through that convention.

We both left the group soon after, for similar reasons, and my life improved hugely. Eight years later, she’s still one of my best friends. She’s getting married soon, and I’m making the wedding dresses for both her and her wife, and I couldn’t be happier for the two of them. I don’t know if she realizes she may have saved my life that weekend, but I’m delighted to have the chance to do something in return for her.

(My wife and I are very close, and neither of our families fully accept us as a same-sex couple or live near us. We also married young, and I still look like a teenager. This means that when she is in the hospital with a badly broken leg, I am her only visitor, and I have to do everything she normally would. Needless to say, I am stressed out. I go to the gift shop to buy her flowers, but have forgotten my wallet.)

Me: “I-I’m sorry. I guess you have to put those back, but I don’t know how I am going to get out of the parking garage now… I just wanted to do something nice for my wife; she’s all I have. I am just so stressed out that I forgot things.” *I start to tear up*

Clerk: “It’s okay. How much is the parking ramp?”

Me: “Really, I couldn’t…  Don’t… It’s an $8 maximum and I can’t stay all day. Don’t—”

(The clerk goes to a back room and gets her own wallet, and hands me $9.)

Clerk: “Pay for your parking, okay, and get yourself a snack?”

(I couldn’t do more than stammer out thanks and try not to cry. Clerk, if you’re reading this, thanks for making a hard time easier!)

(I’m visiting my favorite zoo and walking around the nature pond when I see a scary-looking, gothy couple — leather jackets, crazy, bright blue hair, piercings and safety pins everywhere, the works. I’m a little nervous… until I see the guy pull a bag out of his pocket, bend down, and start feeding the squirrels! This is clearly pretty routine, as at least three squirrels come up and start eating right out of his hand, while the girl takes notes. Seeing how curious I am, they invite me to try, too, and I soon have squirrels very delicately taking sunflower seeds and acorns out of my palm.)

Girl: “I’m a biology major, and I’m doing a survey of these guys as part of my thesis. [Boyfriend] is kind enough to help me out, and the squirrels around here are so tame, it makes it easy to take measurements.”

Me: “That’s pretty awesome. I will admit that I was a little nervous at first when you walked up.”

Girl: “It’s the hair, isn’t it?”

(I nod and she laughs.)

Girl: “I’m starting an internship in six months that I’ll have to look normal for, so I’m getting all the crazy fashion choices out of the way now.”

Guy: “I work from home. I always look this way!”

Girl: “Yeah, I know, don’t rub it in. I’ll have to re-dye my hair and lose the piercings soon enough!”

(They were an absolutely sweet couple, and they told me more about urban squirrel populations than I ever knew existed. Guess you can’t tell by looking!)

This story is part of our Squirrel roundup! This is the last story in the roundup, but we have plenty of others you might enjoy!

10 Hilarious Stories About Monkeys And Bad Customers Monkeying Around

Read the next Squirrel roundup story!

Read the Squirrel roundup!

(I am disabled and on benefits. One day I go to the local Disability Resource Center to get a form that will let me camp for free at Provincial Parks campsites. Sitting behind me are three children, ranging in age from approximately one through eight. At one point, the eldest starts singing ‘Hush Little Baby’ to her youngest sibling.)

Girl: “And if that diamond ring gets broke, Mama’s gonna buy you… umm…” *she pauses for a moment, trying to remember the next line* “… a banana!”

(It was just too cute. I couldn’t help myself and burst out laughing. I smiled at her and a minute later she began singing again. I was also treated to a rendition of ‘Miss Molly’ and ‘Rock-a-bye Baby’.)

In high school, I sign up for a program called Computer Buddies, where anyone in the community with a question about their computer or the Internet can come in and a student will help them solve it.

It’s my first time doing it, and I’m a little nervous, when I get paired with an absolutely lovely, elderly, Vietnamese lady who came in with her laptop. One of her brothers is in Vietnam, one is in Hawaii, and her kids are scattered across most of the mainland US, so she wants to learn how to do things that will let her see her family — email, Skype, and booking plane tickets, especially. One of her sons gave her the laptop, but none of her kids have had time to teach her how to use it, so we get it plugged in, and I show her how to set up an email account. Before I know it, the hour’s gone, and we’ve barely covered half of what she wants to know… so we make arrangements to meet at the local library, and I’ll keep helping her out.

While she openly admits to being nervous, she’s clearly a bright woman, and despite her protests that she’s never touched a computer before, she picks it up pretty quickly. She’s also pretty fascinating; while in the US, she worked as a teacher and social worker, and before moving here, she lived in Vietnam, Cambodia, France, and Germany, and speaks at least half a dozen languages.

Ten years later, we still see each other every other month or so, but these days it’s mostly for coffee or lunch. She now has a smartphone and can email, Skype, and web-surf like a pro, and though she still occasionally asks for my help changing her security settings or troubleshooting a problem, she’s one tech-savvy grandma. She’s also just a genuinely lovely person.

I’ve met most of her family and she’s met most of mine; when we see each other, we often bring each other a small gift like a bar of scented soap or an interesting bit of jewelry or a plate of cookies. My boyfriend and my parents quite adore her, and when we go out to eat, we always end up happily arguing about who gets to treat the other! She’s become an adoptive aunt/grandma, and one of my favorite people.

I’m glad she swallowed her nerves and came into my high school ten years ago!