From the archives: This story was last updated in February 2019.
In January, a heartwarming video emerged from Turkey, depicting a woman’s random act of kindness toward a stray dog on a rainy day. What the woman did was fairly simple and lasted for only less than a minute, yet her sweet gesture has touched the hearts of many.It was a chilly winter day in Zonguldak, Turkey, when the woman walked out of a cafe. As it was still drizzling, she opened her umbrella and was prepared to embark on her path.
However, the woman hesitated to leave as she glanced at a black-and-white dog sleeping on the sidewalk outside the cafe, curling beneath the front door overhang.
Apparently, the woman felt sympathetic toward the pitiful stray dog, which was shivering in the cold and had nothing to protect itself from the rain.
So, instead of ignoring the dog like what many other passersby did that day, she put her umbrella down on the pavement, removed the scarf from her neck, and placed it over the poor animal.
The dog looked up for a brief moment at the scarf, which was covering its body, while the woman walked away.
She thought nobody was watching when she offered her scarf to keep the dog warm. However, unbeknownst to her, this kind gesture was being caught on a security camera situated at the front of the cafe’s building.
The moving footage eventually made its rounds on social media, warming hearts.
As the video spread like wildfire, garnering millions of views, someone identified the woman as her friend, Duygu Elma.
Elma, a newspaper editor, didn’t expect her simple, small gesture to go viral.
“I couldn’t imagine that my actions would receive this attention. I’m very surprised about it,” she told The Dodo.
As to why Elma helped the dog of her own will, she explained, “The weather was so cold. I just couldn’t take it when I saw him shivering.”
She also added she’s happy to have set an example of kindness for others to follow.
Kudos to Elma for giving the dog a little warmth, compassion, and love when it needed it most.
If the dog could talk, it would probably have said, “Aww, thank you so much for giving me your scarf!”
We hope the stray dog will find a forever home, where it can snuggle up under a soft and comfortable blanket, soon.
You never know whose day you’re about to light up, so keep spreading the goodness by doing these precious little random of acts of kindness.
