This story is incredible. Be sure to pass it on, but more
importantly...be sure to live it!!
He was driving home one evening, on a two-lane country road.
Work, in this small mid-western community, was almost as slow as
his beat-up Pontiac. But he never quit looking. Ever since the
factory closed, he'd been unemployed, and with winter raging on,
the chill had finally hit home.
It was a lonely road. Not very many people had a reason to be
on it, unless they were leaving. Most of his friends had already left.
They had families to feed and dreams to fulfill. But he stayed on.
After all, this was where he buried his mother and father. He was
born here and knew the country.
He could go down this road blind, and tell you what was on
either side, and with his headlights not working, that came in
handy. It was starting to get dark and light snow flurries were
coming down. He'd better get a move on.
You know, he almost didn't see the old lady, stranded on the
side of the road. But even in the dim light of day, he could see she
needed help. So he pulled up in front of her Mercedes and got
out. His Pontiac was still sputtering when he approached her.
Even with the smile on his face, she was worried. No one had
stopped to help for the last hour or so. Was he going to hurt her?
He didn't look safe, he looked poor and hungry. He could see that
she was frightened, standing out there in the cold. He knew how
she felt.
It was that chill that only fear can put in you. He said, "I'm here
to help you ma'am. Why don't you wait in the car where it's warm.
By the way, my name is Joe." Well, all she had was a flat tire, but
for an old lady, that was bad enough. Joe crawled under the car
looking for a place to put the jack, skinning his knuckles a time or
two. Soon he was able to change the tire. But he had to get dirty
and his hands hurt. As he was tightening up the lug nuts, she
rolled down her window and began to talk to him. She told him
that she was from St. Louis and was only just passing through.
She couldn't thank him enough for coming to her aid. Joe just
smiled as he closed her trunk.
She asked him how much she owed him. Any amount would
have been alright with her. She had already imagined all the awful
things that could have happened had he not stopped. Joe never
thought twice about the money. This was not a job to him. This
was helping someone in need, and God knows there were plenty
who had given him a hand in the past. He had lived his whole life
that way, and it never occurred to him to act any other way. He
told her that if she really wanted to pay him back, the next time she
saw someone who needed help, she could give that person the
assistance that they needed, and Joe added "...and think of me".
He waited until she started her car and drove off. It had been a
cold and depressing day, but he felt good as he headed for home,
disappearing into the twilight. A few miles down the road the lady
saw a small cafe. She went in to grab a bite to eat, and take the
chill off before she made the last leg of her trip home. It was a
dingy looking restaurant. Outside were two old gas pumps. The
whole scene was unfamiliar to her. The cash register was like the
telephone of an out of work actor--it didn't ring much.
Her waitress came over and brought a clean towel to wipe her
wet hair. She had a sweet smile, one that even being on her feet
for the whole day couldn't erase. The lady noticed that the
waitress was nearly eight months pregnant, but she never let the
strain and aches change her attitude. The old lady wondered how
someone who had so little could be so giving to a stranger. Then
she remembered Joe.
After the lady finished her meal, and the waitress went to get
her change from a hundred dollar bill, the lady slipped right out the
door. She was gone by the time the waitress came back. She
wondered where the lady could be, then she noticed something
written on a napkin. There were tears in her eyes, when she read
what the lady wrote. It said, "You don't owe me a thing, I've been
there too. Someone once helped me out, the way I'm helping you.
If you really want to pay me back, here's what you do. Don't let
the chain of love end with you."
Well, there were tables to clear, sugar bowls to fill, and people
to serve, but the waitress made it through another day. That night
when she got home from work and climbed into bed, she was
thinking about the money and what the lady had written. How
could she have known how much she and her husband needed
it? With the baby due next month, it was going to be hard. She
knew how worried her husband was, and as he lay sleeping next
to her, she gave him a soft kiss and whispered soft and low,
"Everything's gonna be alright; I love you, Joe."
Today, I shared with you this story,
now I am asking you to pass it on...