What would you do if your act of kindness was refused?
In the era of social media, people are beginning to provide others with gestures of goodwill and share it to their followers online, but when the person receiving the help doesn’t actually want it, it can leave the influencer feeling dejected.
For instance, when this TikToker's plan to pay for a stranger's food shop went awry, she burst into tears.
Amelia Goldsmith, from London, had hoped to make someone feel good after running to Sainsbury's in a bid to pay for a shop.
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Hoping to 'cheer somebody up', she was excited, but wasn’t sure how to begin.
The TikToker said: "I'm nervous.
"I just hope they don't look at me thinking I'm some weirdo."
But it didn’t go as she’d planned.
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Unfortunately, it seemed as though there wasn’t anyone willing to allow her to pay for their groceries, which left her feeling stressed.
During one attempt where she approached a man at the till to offer to pay for his food, he replied: "No, no, no. I really don't need it."
In another try, a woman told Goldsmith: "There's a lot more deserving people, but thank you."
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In the end, it all got too much for her and she began to cry on camera.
Speaking to her followers, Goldsmith said: "That was really stressful.
"I was expecting the first person to be like, overjoyed and grateful and happy for me to pay for their shopping, but obviously that didn't go down well."
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After struggling to find someone who would accept her offer, she instead decided to give back another way - and donated pasta and sauces to the store's food bank bin.
Goldsmith said: "Weird turnout, but I'm still really happy that the food can go to those who really need it.
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"I'm just really overwhelmed right now, I don't know what's going on."
However, her viewers had a gripe with the video.
They pointed out that Goldsmith had visited a Sainsbury's in Balham, which is a wealthier area in London.
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Others suggested that those she approached had refused as they felt awkward about accepting help.
One viewer wrote: "Lovely gesture, but remember you don't need to film a good deed to be valid."
Another commented: "Maybe coz you were filming it idk, if someone offered to do something for me but has their phone in their hand, idk."
One supportive commenter said: "You should be so proud of your pure intentions, no one can take away your intentions from you and you should be so proud of yourself for this."
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Another wrote: "You can buy my food shop any day," as a fellow fan commented: "I think in the future maybe give the people at the tills the money to anonymously cover the next person's bill??
"I think people feel awkward/ get weird."
What do you make of it?
Topics: News, Charity, TikTok, Social Media, Food and Drink
Britt Jones