I Am Not A Superhero...

...just trying to do little things that might make the world a bit better.

During my life thus far, I will try to help people when it seems safe and within my ability to assist them. When I was in college, if I saw someone with their vehicle's hood open, I would drive by and ask if they needed help. This one particular time, I saw a group of kids trying to push start a manual car. I drove by and said I have some jumper cables if you need some help. They accepted my offer and we got this stranger's jeep up and running.

Another time, I was just getting off work at student orientation. I was walking to my car and this woman came up to me and asked if I had any jumper cables. She mentioned that this was her daughter's car and she did not know how it worked. But I tried starting the car and it was dead. I cannot recall what car she had but I had to pull out the manual to figure out how to open the hood. The lever was not in the usual place or it was unmarked. Nevertheless, she and I had a small conversation about college. Soon her daughter showed up and I recognized her from the orientation. We talked for a while as I worked on the car. To jump her car it was a little tough. Mostly because both our car batteries were on the drivers side and I could not park in front of her due to a sidewalk and drop off. I had to park as close as I could to her to jump the car but we got it up and running. They both thanked me and the mother wanted to give me some money. I stepped back with my hands up "Oh no ma'am, I don't ... " as she shoved the money in my front shirt pocket (I knew I did not like shirts with pockets. Although my Dad liked shirts with pockets) "... but I appreciate it."

My cousin and I were painting the living room this summer. It was a hot summer day and this young man came knocking at the door asking for some tools to work on his truck and some water. I asked if he knew what tools he needed and he was not sure about exact wrench sizes, but he said I could come with him if he was afraid that he was going to steal my tools. I was not sure what to do. The risk of going off with a stranger or the risk of letting him borrow tools that he may not return. So, I took a chance. I gave him a glass of water and grabbed my tools. We only went down the road near the next house where his friend was looking at the engine. I gave him my tool box and I stood by my truck away from them while they worked on their truck. It took them about ten minutes to get their truck running and they asked if they could stop by the house and get more water. They had bottles they gave me and I went inside to fill up their bottles. They thanked me and we had a small chat about what was up the road and how long we have lived here.

At the wonderful world of Wal-Mart, I was at the checkout line while the clerk was bagging my items. As she would rotate the carousel, I would remove my bag and pull open the new bag ready for use. She noticed this and commented that she appreciated me helping her out, how much trouble they have with those bags, and asked if I had worked at a Wal-Mart before. If you are wondering, no, I have never worked at a Wal-Mart.

People are lazy and leave their shopping carts where ever they feel like putting them. If I see a stray cart as I am going into a store, I will grab it and either drop it off at the area where you normally pick up a cart or I will use it myself. And as I leave, if I see a stray cart, I will grab one and take it to the cart return not to mention that I will straighten out the carts and push them together if required. Not only are there lazy people, but there are one-uppers. I saw this guy going around collecting ALL the carts and taking them up to the store. I assumed he was not an employee because he was not wearing an orange vest or any uniform of any kind. However, he did have to chase a cart across the parking lot. I found that humorous.

There was this girl I knew when I attended community college. She was in my sophomore level Chemistry lab. I never really talked to her much until my lab partner and her lab partner dropped out of the class. So, one day when we were in lab, I motioned to her to partner up with me since our original partners went AWOL. She attended a different lecture for Chemistry but we had the same teacher. It was the week of final exams and I had already taken my chemistry final. She mentioned that she had to make a certain grade on the final exam to receive a C in the class so that she can get into nursing school. I told her that I would help her study if she wanted some help.
"You'd help me study even though you've already taken your final exam?" She asked.
"Yes" I replied.
Throwing her arms around me she exclaimed "I love you!"
We exchanged numbers and set aside a time us to meet at the library for the next day.
I remember that she brought animal cookies even though food was not allowed in the library. I knew some tricks about chemistry that she did not know about. I cannot recall how long we studied but her test was the next day.
Two weeks later I received a call from Beka stating that she indeed made a C in chemistry and was accepted into nursing school. Who knows, maybe some day she will be treating me. It is a small world after all.


I live by the "Pay it Forward" mantra.

Just be sure to tell Lois that I'm always around.