Lesson 2. We Are All In This Together
The sun beat down and the radio was blasting in my 2003 Toyota Sienna. The windows were down as I feverishly drove to get food on my lunch hour. Working as a graphic designer for a sunglasses company, I developed a terrible habit of not bringing my lunches and ate out a lot. I would usually grab some lunch as quickly as possible and then drive to a nearby park to sketch while I ate.
This particular day I had a few other errands I was trying to squeeze in: drop a package off at the post office and deposit a check at the bank. Naturally I was in the proverbial hurry.
As I rounded the 5 way stop amidst the chaos of lunchtime traffic, I noticed an older gentlemen, sweating (and slightly irritated with his current acquisition of an invisibility cloak) on the side of the road with a plastic bag trying to thumb down the fury of zombies driving past for a ride somewhere.
Quickly driving past, My mind paused for a moment, playing mental tennis of the pros/cons of stopping to see if the stranger needed help. But then the words of my father pierced my own zombie-fied brain. “We’re all in this together” he tells me (to this day). It was like Obi-Wan speaking to Luke at the end of Star Wars.
Like a lightning striking with a bolt of realization, I turned the van around and went to pick up the stranger. Turns out he worked at Publix and needed a ride back to work. (This is a whole other story for another time) But suffice to say we had a great conversation even through a language barrier and he got to work on time.
I didn’t make it to the bank nor post office that day, but I did get to eat and I take solace in knowing that I helped someone in need that day.
Have you ever gone out of your way to help someone? I would love to hear your story!
