Email
Print
Stalled ride leads to lesson learned
ADVERTISEMENT
Published: October 11, 2009
Have you ever found yourself in a lonely pickle and wondered how in the world you would get out of it?
This happened to a friend of my mother's recently. She, however, found herself being rescued from her pickle by an unexpected someone — or make that two "someones."
I have an interesting story to tell that will hopefully leave you with several points to ponder, including: the belief in the true goodness in human nature, the value of not pre-judging others and the importance of the foundation of good teachers in our lives. Let me preface the story with the fact that my mother taught kindergarten for 30 years at the Methodist Church in Elkin.
Her friend found herself at a stop light in the middle of a busy intersection in Elkin where an accident had just occurred. There was a long line of cars and a busy police officer. To make matters worse, it was pouring rain. She noticed the vibrating car in front of her that contained two teenage boys who were jamming to the booming bass coming from the stereo system.
She then began to notice strange sounds coming from her car engine as it idled during the lengthy wait. At long last, it was time to go, but her car had another idea. It decided to completely shut down in lieu of cooperation. She glanced in her rearview mirror and noticed a clean-cut man attired in a business suit and sunglasses in a BMW. She looked pleadingly at him as she thought to herself, "Thank goodness. He looks like someone who will help me." This man, however, gave her a rude gesture, shook his head impatiently and capped it off by honking his horn loudly.
About that time, she looked up to see the two teenage boys in front of her jump out of their loud car and coming running toward her. One yelled out, "I'll be right back! Don't go anywhere!" He headed to the man in the car behind her and yelled out, "Do your designer sunglasses not let you see that this lady is in trouble and needs help? If you stop blowing your horn, we're going to help her."
Her friend sat in stunned disbelief, as the two boys began pushing her car from behind into the parking lot of a fast food restaurant. The next moment, one of the boys was running up to her with a large soda drink that he had bought for her in the restaurant. He said, "You look like you probably need a 'real drink,' but this is the best Sonic could do."
They asked her if she needed a lift somewhere and she replied that she was on her way to a meeting at the Methodist Church. One of the boys spoke up saying, "Oh, I know where that is. I went to Mrs. Dudley's kindergarten there. She always taught us to do right by people. She would have put me in 'time out' if I had not helped you. She taught us well. We'll take you there."
On the ride over to the church, she felt a comfortable, warm feeling with her unexpected, special new friends who had unexpectedly saved her from her lonely pickle. I'm sure my mother would give them a smiley sticker for the Good Samaritan act.
Email
Print
ADVERTISEMENT
Advertisement
