Proof that good still shows up

Last month, something happened in my backyard that I still can’t quite believe.

Our neighbour was nominated anonymously to receive a new roof from Rudan Metal Roofing, a group of roofers and popular YouTubers based out of Toronto — the kind of people who show up to help families who genuinely need it. It felt surreal. Do things like this actually happen in real life?

As it turns out, they do.

The crew arrived, equipment and materials in hand, ready to get to work. But partway through, a large chunk of ice slid off the roof and went straight through the plastic roof of our shed. Accidents happen, especially during winter roofing jobs, and they immediately came over to apologize and offered to replace it.

That alone was more than fair, and we were grateful for the offer.

A few days later, however, they came back with a different plan. Our neighbour had shared details of some of our previous small acts of kindness, even if they were more sporadic in recent years as our family grew. And so, instead of replacing the shed, they offered to build an entirely new one. Bigger. Better. Permanent.

The old shed was maybe five by eight feet. Functional, yet flimsy. But it did its job. What they built instead was double the size, fully framed, sided, and finished with proper eaves and a stunning metal roof (roofers, after all). It was less like a shed and more like a tiny house.

At a time when so much of what we see online feels curated or exaggerated, this felt undeniably real. Yes, these projects are shared online with a hope that they reach a wide audience. But standing there, watching them show up day after day in the cold, there was nothing performative about the work itself. It was physical, time-consuming, and done with care.

I stood at the window more than once watching it take shape, still surprised that this was happening. Not because a shed was being built, but because generosity like this can exist on many levels — meaningful to thousands online, and life-changing in very ordinary ways.

It reminded me that good still begets good. That kindness doesn’t lose its value just because it’s visible. Sometimes it’s amplified by it, inspiring more people to show up, to give, to help in whatever way they can.

This year, let’s remember it’s still worth showing up for our neighbours. Still worth the small, decent acts that often go unnoticed. Because every so often, those acts add up to something solid, unexpected, and deeply meaningful. And who knows? One day, it might result in a brand new shed.