Random Acts of
Kindness
It’s kind of humorous when I think
about it now, but at the time, I felt defeated.
As I left the nursing home after visiting my father-in-law, I got in the
Silver Bullet and headed back to the cabin.
The tears were coursing down my face as the sky opened up and unleashed
a terrible storm. The torrential
downpour outside of the car equaled the emotional upheaval inside of me as I
headed up the highway. I talked, prayed,
okay… ranted, as I begged my father in heaven to give me the sight to see the
road clearly and the insight as to which way to go. I felt overwhelmed by all that I had to do,
and I felt like a failure with what I had tried to accomplish. I think that my grandmother used to refer to
this dynamic as a good ol’-fashioned “pity party.” So there I was partying my way up 93 North
when I saw the signs alerting me to the fact that there was a tollbooth
ahead. I frantically searched my armrest
for the coins I would need to pass through this obstruction in my path. I found pennies. I found nickels. I found Australian coins, but no quarters… nothing that would get me
through. Slowing as I approached the
barrier, I reached behind the seat blindly searching for my pocketbook. As I deciphered its presence and swung it
onto my lap, I halted the van at the stall.
I rolled down my window, held up my index finger and asked for her
indulgence as I began to scan the deep recesses of the purse for my
payment. Its upright and unbending
handles poked into my eyeball, and I was once again blinded by the impalement
as well as my own stupefying stupidity.
As this absurd scene continued to unfold and the cars began to impatiently
line up behind me, I glanced up sheepishly to see the attendant beaming at me
from behind a veil of fog, water and pain.
“You
may pass on through, Ma’am. The
gentleman in front of you paid your way.
Have a great night.” My mind was
a swirling mass of confusion.
“Who?” I queried while she pointed to the anonymous
car speeding away ahead of me. “…but I
don’t know him…” I floundered futilely
for the words to express this misunderstanding.
“Have a
wonderful night!” she cheered.
“Congratulations and thank you.”
“Thank
YOU,” I bawled as I lowered the purse back to the floor of the car, squinting
at the metallic dot on the waning horizon and crying even harder now.
…And so
it was that when I was feeling the most helpless and lost, a selfless, and
presumably random, act of kindness came from out of the clouds to give me
courage and help me find my way home.
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