We often are silenced by those unmatchable acts of kindness. A person donating a kidney to a stranger. A person anonymously giving to a college so that kids who could never afford to attend, can attend. A physician voluntarily spending weeks in Jamaica or Honduras year after year.

Yet, not all acts of kindness are heroic. Some of my hosts have treated me as “part of the family.”

Similar to picking-up a son at the airport, hosts have picked me up and driven me to their BnB. When one host realized I was walking, and her BnB was a mile outside town, she quickly said: “Go to the supermarket and wait, I’ll be there in five minutes.”

As when we surprise our parents during our college years by telling them, “oh, by the way I’m bring so-and-so home with me for the break.” When I surprisingly message my hosts asking “ I’d like to arrive early is that a problem?”, I have not had a single host say no. And, hosts like Paolo have a drink ready for me!

Like kids asking their parents endless questions, some hosts have answered my questions, questions after question. Sometimes they provide useful reading, sometimes not so useful. I don’t think Italian western comic books are quite my genre.

Sometimes being “part of the family” means simply sitting at their kitchen table. Franco and Fiorella proudly told me about losing 50 pounds by using Herbalife. Interesting. Even their pet bulldog welcomed me! At other times, I’m invited to join the prayers and sit at the table with sisters and friars such as Friar Paolo at the Community of Betania.

At times, the anonymity of staying in a hotel is convenient. At times, finding a hotel that is 10-yards from the Via Francigena can’t be overlooked. Yet, the BnB’s and the religious Community of Betania can’t be matched. Small, but helpful, acts of kindness. Heroic acts of kindness are noteworthy, but so are all the unheroic acts of kindness.