With Christmas around the corner, there is an increased emphasis on giving, and so this is what we will concentrate on throughout the month of December: Giving. With every passing day, I will blog about giving and document all stories of the spirit of giving that I encounter throughout the month.
Today I’d like to share a story of a couple of kind men that were generous with their time as I was in need of assistance. To get straight to the point, I was gassing up at a convenience store, with my daughter in the back seat, and so stupidly, I left the wipers on, my phone charging, the radio on, as well as the fan on my air conditioner. NOT a good combination when it comes to the energy of the car battery.
It was a particularly cold and rainy day, and there was two other people at the gas pumps, so I found my jumper cables (THANK GOD I had them in the trunk,) and went over to another person to say “Hi, I need a jump…my battery died just died because like a dork I left everything running. After you finishing pumping, would you mind giving me a jump start?”
The gentleman, couldn’t have been more than 25 years old, and was driving a truck, and he kindly agreed to give me a jump. Once he was through with gassing up, he pulls in front of my car. I got out of the car and popped the hood and unwound the jumper cables.
I told him “Do you know how to do this? Because this is the first time I’ve ever done it.” With a confused look in his face, he tells me, “Uh, I don’t know how to either, this is my first time too!” As he says that, I see another gentleman, and ask him if he could help us, and he took control, and within 2 or 3 minutes, the car was running!
Relief overcame me as I gathered my cables, and asked the two men their names: Jessie and Eddie. Jessie and Eddie, you are my life savers today! If it weren’t for your kindness and giving your time (and sticking through the cold and rainy day to help me,) who knows who would’ve been willing to help me or how long I would’ve been sitting there.
About an hour later, in attempt to pass on the spirit of giving, I tried to help my friend vacuum her house, but it ended up blowing up in my face because the vacuum belt ended up breaking and so I ended up doing some sweeping. It was an unexpected visit, so I didn’t have anywhere to put the baby, so I had to manage with carrying her and sweeping. Lol, you can just imagine how that went!
In other concerns for the day, I will be sending a care package to troops for the holidays soon, and I know things are tight out there for some families, but if we all pull together , we can help make some soldier’s wishes come true. I will post a wish list(s) (with prices) and those of you that are interested can send in donations based off of the amounts, and if we get enough involvement, maybe we can send more than just our wish list to the deserving troops risking their lives. If you’d like to contribute through a donation, you can send it via paypal to email address:
admin @ halemom.com
I will personally pay all postage fees and will find all the items on the wishlist, and take suggestions on other items that can be sent. We count on the troops everyday to represent us while over seas, but now is time for the troops to count on us to make their holiday wishes come true while they’re away from their families. Stay tuned in the next few days for further information!
President Obama is on TV right now, in regard to the very troops that we discuss here today, so I must go. Feel free to discuss your thoughts on Obama sending additional troops to Afghanistan in the coming months, and any other opinions and ideas you have in regards to supporting the troops.
To you health, and to health of our brave soldiers!
~Hale Mom
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Hooray for the kindness of strangers!
Hooray, indeed!