Family

I remember reading about a man who did 65 things to pay it forward for his 65th birthday. I was stunned by the amount of selflessness and good will that he had. On a slightly related note, on my ride home today (around 7 o'clock), on my regular route down Genessee, I noticed a stopped Toyota Highlander with a father and his son pushing the car, while the daughter and mother steered it straight along the curbside.

I passed by them, but as I realised something was up, I turned around in the middle of the street and backtracked to see if they needed a hand. The man responded "well, yeah we kinda do." I asked what was wrong, and he said that they had run out of petrol. So I helped them push the car, bicycle in one hand and my legs pushing my left hand while we propelled the car through the turn and right beside the curb. I offered to drive the father to get some gas, and he gratuitously accepted.


I then sped home, tossed my bike in the back seat and picked him up. Headed over to Sears to grab a fuel can, and then over to Chevron for a few gallons of fuel. On the way he told me about how he works in Germany and that they were on vacation, travelling to Oregon, Los Angeles with Disneyland and Universal Studios, then visiting Sea World tomorrow. I really enjoyed his story, and how hes got to fly to El Paso tomorrow to grab his new license and then meet his family later in the evening after a day at Sea World. The man kindly gave me a few dollars and I lead him back to the gas station after we got his car running again. I wish I got his name, but I was more concerned about making sure that he and his family got on their way quickly and safely than anything. Paying it forward like this just reminds me of my own parents, and how they've sometimes been stuck without fuel and the lessons they've taught me throughout my life to treat others with the same kindness you'd like to be treated with.   On that note, I'm thankful that I was able to actually drive my car because of my buddy Sami who helped me get it running last weekend. God is good.