Nothing prepares you for the moment you meet good karma, the reward for small acts of kindness you’ve sown over time. This manifests in myriad ways. For two individuals who returned a stranger’s wallet, good karma came in the form of an angel on earth, Ivana Alawi, who gave them money as a reward, enabling them to indulge in shopping for clothes and groceries.

In her latest vlog on YouTube titled “Swapping Wallets With A Stranger,” Ivana and her brother, Hash Alawi, along with their team, went to a mall and tried to see if anyone would return the wallet they purposely dropped. The person who would show honesty and kindness would be taken shopping by Ivana and Hash using the money in their own wallets.

In the video, Ivana revealed that her wallet had 61,540 pesos. Meanwhile, Hash typically prefers paying with cards over cash, so he only had 15,000 pesos in his wallet. In a gesture of generosity, Ivana added an additional 35,000 pesos to Hash's wallet, bringing the total to 50,000 pesos. They intended to give these wallets to the honest strangers and allow them to spend the money however they pleased.

There were numerous honest individuals in the mall who approached the accomplices about the wallets they had dropped. However, not everyone had the time to participate in Ivana’s vlog. So, when the accomplice encountered the next person who returned his wallet, Ivana promptly spoke to the old man over the phone and instructed him to wait as she made her way from the parking area to their location. “Hindi naman po kinakailangan na mapremyuhan sa ganu’n, eh,” the man told Ivana. The same scenario happened with the second stranger, a woman who returned the wallet of another accomplice.

“Deserve nila ‘to kasi may mabubuti silang puso,” remarked Ivana as she met the honest individuals and presented them with their rewards. True to the Filipino value of generosity, the elderly man, Luisito, called his wife to join him at the store so he could also shop for her. He also purchased items for his siblings. Similarly, the woman, who said it wasn’t the first time she returned a lost item, also bought clothes for her husband and children.

“Ang cute ng mga ngiti nila, nakakatuwa, and sobrang deserve nila kasi ilang beses na pala silang nagsasauli palagi, so this is their good karma,” expressed Ivana while watching them enjoy shopping.

They proceeded to the grocery area, where they had the opportunity to choose whatever item they needed using the remaining money in Hash and Ivana's wallets. Although Ivana wished to accompany them for grocery shopping, due to security concerns arising from the thickening crowd trying to catch a glimpse of her, she opted to remain in the car and monitor the activities from there. Tatay Luisito went over the remaining budget, so he and his wife considered reducing their purchases. However, Hash insisted on paying for everything in their cart.

At the end of the vlog, they imparted valuable lessons about honesty that we must carry into our daily lives. “Tungkol doon sa pagkapulot ko ng wallet na naisauli ko, dapat naman wala ng kapalit at ‘yun ang dapat ng gawin ng tao. Ako ay nagulat dahil si Ms. Ivana may ibibigay. Hindi naman kailangan na ako ay bigyan pa ng gantimpala para sa nagawa kong maliit na bagay. But, anyway, since insistent kayo, ako ay nagpapasalamat,” expressed Tatay Luisito. “I think duty ng isang tao na ‘pag hindi sa’yo ay dapat hindi mo kunin, sa halip ay ibalik sa may-ari. All the time, dapat honest tayong lahat.”

Meanwhile, the woman shared, “Lesson sa atin na ibalik natin ‘yung hindi pag-aari natin kasi si Lord ang mababalik talaga ng prize para sa mga tao na nagbibigay.”

Ivana then expressed her happiness that she, and her followers, were once again able to help deserving individuals with kind hearts.