The kindness of strangers

Something unusual happened to me yesterday, but I think it was something meant to happen in the greater plan of life.

I had met a colleague in the parking lot of a small local plaza.  I had ended my position as treasurer on a non-profit board and was delivering my files to the new treasurer.  I parked a few rows over from her, not seeing her at first, grabbed my filebox, my keys, and my debit card, thinking I would treat her to coffee and a pastry as we reviewed the role of treasurer.  I think she planned to just take the files and run, ready to assume her role.  However, as I began explaining the paperwork to her, she said, "Wait, let's put that filebox in the backseat of my car and we can look at the files from there." Ok, no coffee and pastry.  I slid the debit card into my back pocket, placed the filebox and my keys on the backseat, and began my tutorial.

An hour later, still coffee-less, we finished.  She drove away, I went to get my long-awaited coffee (and I did skip the pastry...really!), walked back to my car and - "Where are my keys??"  I looked under my car, I looked in the parking spot where we exchanged files, I went inside the coffee shop - no keys.  Oh boy.  This was going to be a problem.  My cellphone was in my locked car.  My wallet was in my locked car.  My house was 5 miles away.  And I was wearing $2 flip-flops.  And it was hot.

Hmmmm.  What to do?  I asked a lovely old lady, sitting outside of Dunkin' Donuts, if I might use her cellphone.  After explaining my conundrum, she loaned me her phone.  I called home once, twice, thrice....no answer.  Now I knew my son Joseph was at home, asleep.  Joseph, however, has the gift of solid sleep that I do so envy.  He often has to be shaken awake.  Oh to sleep so soundly!!

There seemed to be no choice but to take my coffee and walk.  But should I get a pastry, that was the question!  Back into Dunkin' Donuts I went and got a bagel.  I walked to the end of the plaza and decided to go into the small grocery store for a bottle of juice - can't be having low blood sugar on a 5 mile walk home without a cellphone or identification.

In the grocery store, I was bemoaning my situation to the cashier, and the manager and another cashier overheard me.  The manager offered me the phone.  Once, twice, thrice I called home....no answer.  The manager said, "You can't walk home in this weather.  Jo here is going to drive you."  Jo is a woman maybe 10 or 15 years older than me and she offered to drive me home.  It wasn't the end of her shift, but the manager told her to not go off the clock, just take care of the customer.  The kindness of strangers.

As we drove, I was explaining what had happened to my keys.  And then I said something I never say to someone I don't know (and sometimes I don't even admit this to people I do know!), " I just finished my chemo so my head is a bit fogged."  The car slowed down and Jo reached over and squeezed my arm.  With tears in her eyes, she choked out, "I was just diagnosed."  Like me a few months earlier, she couldn't say cancer.   We talked the whole way home.  I offered her support and comfort, suggested she pray and everything would be as it should.  Told her that it was ok to cry, that crying isn't a sign of weakness, told her that I cried a good part of the day before.  You can cry and still be strong.  Cancer is scary but she's not alone.  We're never alone.

In my driveway, she hugged me and said somehow, strange as it was, she loved me, and it was meant for us to meet.

At home, Joseph was awake and had called his father to find out why the grocery store kept calling.  "Did mom order something?  Was I supposed to pick up something from there?"  Yes, he had been awake for these grocery store calls but didn't answer the phone.  I, too, think it was because Jo and I were meant to meet.