Andrew
Last weekend I met Andrew and we spent a short half hour together. I may or may not ever see Andrew again, and either way that's OK with me.
On Saturday, we had our first snow storm of the Winter season and I was out running errands for Mom. I saw a person spin out and they ended up in a ditch with their van. Without hesitation, I stopped; I just felt it was the right thing to do. I asked this man, with a defeated look on his face, if he needed help. He slightly smiled and told me he tried to call his girlfriend but she didnt answer and he was going to walk to her house. It was the still snowing pretty hard and he was on the freeway so I offered him a ride, again without hesitation. He seemed startled that I'd made such an offer, but he accepted after some quick thought.
I drove him to his girlfriend's house, which ended up being about 5 miles away. We talked the whole time and it wasnt akward like you'd assume it would be with a random stranger that I'd picked up along the freeway. Andrew shared how surprised he was that someone actually stopped because as he put it "I'm a big guy with long hair and scruffy facial hair." We laughed about the show Rent, he told me about his family and work, and of course we talked about his van in the ditch.
I dont have a good explanation as to why I stopped and helped other than it felt like I needed to do it. I do a lot based on my instinct and what I feel is right. I may or may not ever see Andrew again and that's not what matters. It matters that ended up in a safe warm place and not stuck on the side of the freeway.
I wonder - if I didnt stop, would anyone have stopped? Is Andrew right, is it all about what we look like that determines if we are helped in the time of need or not?
On Saturday, we had our first snow storm of the Winter season and I was out running errands for Mom. I saw a person spin out and they ended up in a ditch with their van. Without hesitation, I stopped; I just felt it was the right thing to do. I asked this man, with a defeated look on his face, if he needed help. He slightly smiled and told me he tried to call his girlfriend but she didnt answer and he was going to walk to her house. It was the still snowing pretty hard and he was on the freeway so I offered him a ride, again without hesitation. He seemed startled that I'd made such an offer, but he accepted after some quick thought.
I drove him to his girlfriend's house, which ended up being about 5 miles away. We talked the whole time and it wasnt akward like you'd assume it would be with a random stranger that I'd picked up along the freeway. Andrew shared how surprised he was that someone actually stopped because as he put it "I'm a big guy with long hair and scruffy facial hair." We laughed about the show Rent, he told me about his family and work, and of course we talked about his van in the ditch.
I dont have a good explanation as to why I stopped and helped other than it felt like I needed to do it. I do a lot based on my instinct and what I feel is right. I may or may not ever see Andrew again and that's not what matters. It matters that ended up in a safe warm place and not stuck on the side of the freeway.
I wonder - if I didnt stop, would anyone have stopped? Is Andrew right, is it all about what we look like that determines if we are helped in the time of need or not?
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on Friday, November 19, 2010 at 1:12 AM.
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