In a World Full of Turmoil — Good Human Beings Do Still Exist
A model of how you too can be a guardian angel for those you encounter on this road we call life.
Our 21-year-old son had recently moved to Los Angeles to pursue his dream of being an aspiring filmmaker/photographer. Upon moving there, he purchased a car (with my “help”) that unfortunately turned out to be a lemon only a few weeks later.
So there he was stuck in a city with a population of ten million people, resorting to their public transportation system to get from his apartment in Pasadena, CA to the Hollywood and downtown LA areas, which is where most of his freelance gigs were.
He spent 2–3 hours per day just getting back and forth, so he soon needed to find another car.
My wife and I were able to help him find another one where we lived at the time in North Carolina, but how do we get it to him when he is 2400+ miles away?
The cost of shipping the car to him was almost as much as the car, so we decided it was time to take a coast-to-coast road trip to deliver his car to him. Sounds like lots of fun. We had no idea what was in store for us on our journey across the USA.
That experience in the summer of 2012 will forever be emblazoned in our memories as it restored our faith that the Good Samaritan is alive and well even in this day and age.
Stranded in Adrian, Texas
Our son’s new car rolled along nicely for almost two days without issues. Then it happened — around 10 p.m. in a very remote and dark area 50 miles west of Amarillo, TX, out in the middle of nowheresville.
The car’s headlights began to dim, and the inside instrument lights were flickering, and the car was losing power fast. We exited the highway as quickly as we could, turned left on a road that led into the small town of Adrian, TX. We willed the car to keep running. It then came to a stop in the parking lot of the smallest US Post Office we had ever seen.
We collected our thoughts, and the reality began to set in. We were stranded late at night in an unknown small town, but at least we weren’t on the side of the highway in the dark as tractor-trailers rolled by going 80.
We were safe, but the car’s battery was dead, so we weren't going anywhere at the moment. It is one of the most helpless feelings.
What to do?
We immediately called roadside assistance and arranged for a tow truck to transport our car to the nearest town, which we found out was 50 miles back the other way in Amarillo.
While waiting for our tow truck to save us, an old pickup truck rolled up next to us in that parking lot. A tall, lanky man with a cowboy hat, boots, and a large belt buckle approached our car window and asked if we needed any help.
We told him that we had a tow truck on the way, but he was very interested to know what was wrong with the car. Once we described what had happened, he immediately said, “That sounds like the alternator is dead and is no longer charging the battery.”
He shared with us that he and his father had just replaced the alternator in his truck, so he knew how to do the job. He offered to meet us in Amarillo tomorrow to fix it for us.
We thanked him for his generosity, got his contact info, and told him we would call him tomorrow if we still needed his help.
The cowboy didn’t even know us, yet he was willing to drive to Amarillo the next day and spend countless hours fixing our car. Why?
He saw a need. Instead of driving by the post office that night, he decided to follow a prompting to turn into that parking lot late at night and check on the strange car that was clearly out of place.
Our Guardian Angel Arrives
The tow truck finally arrived an hour later, and our broken car was secured in place on the truck, and we were on our way back to Amarillo. This detour would set us back a total of nearly 3 hours, not counting the time we waited for the tow truck. Then there’s the time it's gonna take to fix the car the next day.
Considering the late hour and the circumstances, we immediately hit it off with our driver talking with him most of the drive, getting to know each other. This helped us temporarily forget about our plight.
Have you ever met someone and feel like you’ve known them forever? This guy was in that category for sure. We were so comfortable talking to him — like talking to a long lost friend.
As we arrived at the Firestone repair shop, the driver skillfully backed our car off the lift into a parking spot where it would rest for the night.
It was just after midnight. As we all stood in the parking lot, my wife and I wondered what we would do next. Knowing that our driver had fulfilled his duty, we didn’t feel right asking him to do anything else for us.
He could have easily wished us well and climbed into his truck to go home as we were the last customer on his shift. But that was not in his DNA.
He undoubtedly sensed the helplessness we felt at that moment, and he graciously offered to drive us to a nearby hotel on his way home so that we could secure a room for the night.
45 minutes later, after trying 10+ hotels only to find all had no vacancies due to a large convention in town, we asked the driver to bring us back to the repair shop, and we would sleep in our car for the night.
What other choice did we have? The guy had already gone way above and beyond.
At that moment, we noticed on the visor in front of him was a familiar picture of Jesus and asked him if he was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He replied, “Yes,” not knowing why we asked such a question.
We told him that we, too, were members of the same church. This prompted another discussion for at least another 30 minutes, reminiscing about our experiences over the years.
At that point, he picked up his phone and called his wife (at 2 a.m.) and asked her to move their two children from their beds.
Short pause — he then explained to her that he was bringing home a couple of stranded travelers to stay the night at their house.
Needless to say, my wife and I were stunned that he would offer to take a couple of strangers to his home. We were exhausted, incredibly grateful, but most of all:
We were extremely touched by his compassion to continue to help us throughout the night, never hesitating to ensure that our needs were met and that we were safe.
Safe Haven
As we entered this angel man’s house, we were greeted by his angel wife, who welcomed us into their home with open arms. They saw a need and didn’t hesitate to help.
What an incredible example to follow — inspired me to want to be a better person and return the favor to be someone’s guardian angel as they were ours.
We settled into the room for a few minutes with two twin beds that never looked so good, and came back out to their living room to thank them again and ended up talking with them for another hour. We made some dear friends that night, feeling again like we had known them forever.
We rose the next morning to the smell of sausage and biscuits for breakfast — our gracious hosts were patiently waiting for us at their kitchen table. We were able to meet the sweet daughters that gave up their beds for strangers. Great kindness runs in the family—such a great feeling in their home.
Since it was a Sunday, we went to church with them. Afterward, our new friends took us to the Firestone shop, where our car was already in one of the bays with a couple of mechanics huddled over the engine area.
Apparently, our tow truck driver was good friends with the shop manager. He had called him earlier that day to be sure our car got looked at first thing, so they would have it diagnosed for us when we arrived.
The manager said the alternator tested fine, but the battery was dead and needed to be replaced. He said they would have us fixed up in a few minutes, and we’d be on our way.
Before we left, I had to get a picture with this incredible guy who came to our rescue the night before, in more ways than we would have ever expected. What started as a routine towing job for him turned into kindness that saw no bounds.
We need more guys like him in the world today, following promptings to assist those that need a helping hand.
It’s really amazing how people are put in your path that can be answers to prayers of safety, comfort and well-being. He was the answer that kept us safe that night.
Oh No, Not Again!
I wish I could say this was the last time we needed his towing services. The car did fine for about an hour, and then it broke down again. The battery light came back on. Apparently, the alternator was the problem after all.
We exited and crossed over the highway to turn back toward Amarillo yet again, hoping to close the distance some for yet another tow back to that same shop to get it fixed again. This time we were on the highway's shoulder, and since it was mid-summer in Texas, it was 100+ degrees.
Stranded again.
We called the Firestone shop, and the manager apologized profusely and said he would arrange a tow truck to bring it back to their shop to fix it correctly.
About an hour later, our same angel tow truck driver loaded up our car on his truck once again, and we made the drive back to the shop where they fixed us up nicely.
He apologized that they didn’t fix our car correctly the first time. Although we weren’t excited that we got stranded again, we knew everything would work out.
He assured us that he would see to it that it gets fixed right this time.
And that he did.
Two hours later, we were back on the road with our car running like a top. I am happy to report that 2 days later, we delivered the car to our son in Pasadena, CA.
What a Life-Changing Road Trip
Experiences like this one happen for a reason. There is something to learn from such kindness, compassion, and selflessness.
We, too, can be that guardian angel who answers prayers from someone in trouble like we were that night. We believe the exact person was sent to us that night would rescue us, possibly from some harm or wrong-doing. Who knows?
All I know is that we were taken care of — let’s all be the type of person that is in tune and follows promptings and is willing to stop for that someone who is stranded on the side of the road.
Not the person that looks the other way and passes them by.