Practice Random Acts of Senseless Kindness
We all agreed today at work that we probably should have waited out the storm instead of attempting to drive home. But when you’re hungry, tired and ready to end your workday, you’re thinking “must get home as fast as possible.” But everyone else is thinking the same thing and MoPac and Capital of Texas Highway, always thick with traffic at that time, were near stand-still. People were reported to be stopped for so long on MoPac that they were getting out and walking around. Without describing in detail the storms
that pummelled Austin yesteday, let’s just say that tornados were spotted both north and south of town and there was flooding everywhere–not just the hill country but all through the city. Cars were literally floating down Lamar, in the shadow of the downtown skyline. Although it took a long time, I had no trouble getting fairly close to my apartment. But after making it through Zilker Park, a cop was was diverting traffic into the neighborhood behind Flipnotics–Barton Springs road was impassable. No problem, I thought, I will just meander through the windy neighborhood and eventually make it to Lamar.
Soon a flooded four-way stop proved too deep for the pickup truck in front of me– there was
no way the Corolla would make it. I turned down a side street and then saw trees bending sideways– was a tornado approaching? I decided I just wasn’t going to drive anymore and pulled into someone’s driveweay.
Now what? I walked to the porch and for a minute thought I might just quietly sit there and maybe wait until the storm eased up a bit. I started to sit down but the covered porch provided little relief from the pounding rain. Screw it, I’ll just knock on the door. After a few knocks I could see that a woman was approaching the foyer. “Um… Hi. I know this seems weird but… I’m sort of stuck because of flooding down at the end of the street can I…” The truth was I probably could have chosen some alternate routes but I was so determined to just get out of the car for a moment–won’t she just invite me in!? She was obviously uneasy about a stranger, soaking wet, just walking right in to her home. Once inside, I was instructed
to have a seat and soon her son came downstairs and greeted me as if I was the older kid down the street. “Do you want something to eat? We have plenty of food,” he said. We munched on apples and watched the news. I couldn’t believe how mature he was. He was soon leaving to attend Tulane on a baseball scholarship. I wondered if his mom was in the kitchen a little spooked. But she soon announced that dinner was ready, “It’s not gourmet but it will have to do.” That was the best Hamburger Helper I have ever had. I was amazed at how comfortable I felt after being there for just ten minutes. Her son was very interested in what my life was like and my experiences in college. Denise insisted I stay until I was perfectly ready to leave. I started to think about how you could drive through an unfamilar
neighborhood and pass hundreds of homes and apartments and inside are people that you may really connect with or have many things in common with. It is unfortunate that we are so glued to our routines that we don’t “allow” more serendipitous occurrences to happen.
And with the astounding lack of public spaces where all kinds of people gather at once, I can’t really think of too many instances where these things can happen. Does it now take literally pulling into someone’s driveway and demanding a conversation? I’m not congratulating myself–I stopped because I was too scared to keep driving, not for any other reason.
I walked into the living room and looked at Denise and she smiled–I am convinced that we were thinking the same thing, “this is really pleasant.” We both recognized that it was an odd arrangement but were also questioning why these kinds of things happen so infrequently. Her son didn’t seem to think anything was unusual. Earlier I even commented to him, “This is kind of strange huh? You don’t know me and here I am chilling in your living room.”
He shrugged and then we started talking baseball again. His dream is to be a major leaguer and he spoke so convincingly about this desire that it didn’t seem cute or nostalgic. I literally think he will wind up (no pun intended) playing in the majors. Of course, not for the Yankees.
With the terrorist attacks (yes terrorist attacks) and general state of anxiety, it is no surprise that someone might be reluctant to just let you into their home. It would have reasonable for her to have said, “I’m sorry, I’m a single mother and don’t feel OK about letting you in.” But I am really glad she detected that I was just looking for shelter and meant no trouble.
After about an hour-and-a-half, the storm had subsided and I said that I was leaving. We all sat down and discussed the best way to navigate to my neighborhood, focusing on avoiding the flood-prone areas. Denise wrote down her number and demanded that I call as soon as I got home to let her know everything was OK. I shook her son’s hand and his grip was firm and respectful. I gave her a hug and was sincerely touched at her kindness. What began as an ultra-stressful, frightening commute home ended as a lovely evening spent with friends.
