Is checkout lane courtesy dead? Or is it alive and well? One woman was so amazed at the response to her simple act of kindness to a stranger at the Costco register that she took to TikTok to ask questions.
Her viewers are still responding to the video two days after it posted and it seems like folks are still out there performing simple acts of kindness. But you might have to look a little harder for them.
Caroline (@theblondebackpacker) posted her query this weekend after letting a stranger go ahead of her in the Costco checkout lane. His amazed reaction caused her to film and post a video that now has 37,800 views.
“Do people not do nice things anymore?” Caroline asked her audience. “I was just in Costco and I had a cartful of things and I pull up to the register, it’s pretty busy, you know, every register has lines.”
She noticed that a senior-aged man had been waiting with only a handful of items in his cart before she even arrived at the register. As she reached the end of the line she says she told him to go ahead of her.
“He was like, ‘Really?’” she tells her viewers.
“People allow me to do that all the time,” she says. “I’m always very appreciative.”
“He was like, ‘Wow!’ and I was like, that doesn’t really constitute a ‘wow,’” she went on.
“Do people not do these kinds of things anymore,” she asks. “Is that not a normal action? To me it is.”
“He was so appreciative…it made me wonder, like, are people not nice anymore?”
@theblondebackpacker Genuinly wondering if people dont do nice things anymore ??? #costco #fiancelife #internationalcouple #virgolife ♬ original sound – Caroline
The video sparked a debate in Caroline’s comment section. While some people seemed to believe that common kindnesses like hers were rare, plenty of others said that decency was alive and well.
Cami (@camievs) wrote, “I do these things, but others don’t. no one says excuse me, please, or thank you. some people think they are so much better than others, it’s sad.”
Caroline replied, “I know it’s so sad.”
Another viewer said that no good deed goes unpunished, writing, “I do this too! But just had the opposite happen to me at Dollar Tree. Was just buying a card & a lady w/ a full cart ran in front of me at checkout.”
One woman wrote that an injury brought out the best in others. “I actually react like that man too because no one is ever kind. When I tore my ACL [and] was on crutches I was in shock how kind people were because I never see it.”
Some viewers said that such courtesies had a lot to do with location.
Wholesome_Reposts (@animalrepost_thedodo) wrote, “I live in a small town. Every time I go to the store, someone lets me go ahead bc I always get like 2-3 things. It happened today. That lady is super sweet. I wish I asked for her name lol.”
Another seemed to confirm the theory, writing, “I didn’t see it much when I lived in big cities.”
The Daily Dot has reached out to Caroline via TikTok messenger for further comment.
