He almost didn't see the old lady, stranded on the side of the road. >But even in the dim light of day, he could see she needed help. >So he pulled up in front of her Mercedes and got out. >His Pontiac was still sputtering when he approached her. > >Even with the smile on his face, she was worried. No one had stopped to >help for the last hour or so ... was he going to hurt her??????????? >He didn't look safe, he looked poor and hungry. He could see that she was >frightened, >standing out there in the cold. He knew how she felt. It was that chill >which only fear can put in you. > >He said, "I'm here to help you ma'am. Why don't you wait in the car where >it's warm? By the way, my name is Bryan." >Well, all she had was a flat tire, but for an old lady, that was bad >enough. >Bryan crawled under the car looking for a place to put the jack, skinning >his knuckles a time or two. Soon he was able to change the tire. > >But he had to get dirty and his hands hurt. As he was tightening up the lug >nuts, she rolled down the window and began to talk to him. >She told him that she was from St. Louis and was only just passing through. > She couldn't thank him enough for coming to her aid. Bryan just smiled as >he closed her trunk. She asked him how much she owed him. Any amount would >have been all right with her. She already imagined all the awful things >that could have happened had he not stopped. >Bryan never thought twice about the money. This was not a job to him. >This was helping someone in need, and God knows there were plenty who had >given him a hand in the past. He had lived his whole life that way, and it >never occurred to him to act any other way. He told her that if she really >wanted to pay him back, the next time she saw someone who needed help, she >could give that person the assistance they needed, and Bryan added, "... >and think of me." >He waited until she started her car and drove off. It had been a cold and >depressing day, but he felt good as he headed for home, disappearing into >the twilight. >A few miles down the road the lady saw a small cafe. She went in to grab a >bite to eat, and take the chill off before she made the last leg of her >trip home. It was a dingy looking restaurant. Outside were two old gas >pumps. The whole scene was unfamiliar to her. The cash register was like >the telephone of an out-of-work actor-it didn't ring much. >Her waitress came over and brought a clean towel to wipe her wet hair. >She had a sweet smile, one that even being on her feet for the whole day >couldn't erase. The lady noticed the waitress was nearly eight months >pregnant, but she never let the strain and aches change her attitude. >The old lady wondered how someone who had so little could be so giving to >a stranger. >Then she remembered Bryan. After the lady finished her meal, and the >waitress went to get change for her hundred dollar bill, the lady slipped >right out the door. > >She was gone by the time the waitress came back. The waitress wondered >where the lady could be, then she noticed something written on the napkin >under which was four $100 bills. There were tears in her eyes when she read >what the lady wrote: "You don't owe me anything, I have been there too. > Somebody once helped me out, the way I'm helping you. If you really want >to pay me back, here is what you do: Do not let this act of love end with >you." >Well, there were tables to clear, sugar bowls to fill, and people to serve, >but the waitress made it through another day. That night when she got home >from work and climbed into bed, she was thinking about the money and what >the lady had written. How could the lady have known how much she and her >husband needed it? With the baby due next month, it was going to be hard. > She knew how worried her husband was, and as he lay sleeping next to her, >she gave him a soft kiss and whispered soft and low, "Everything's gonna be >all right; I love you, Bryan." >There is an old saying "What goes around comes around." Today, >I sent you this story, and I'm asking you to pass it on ... > >Let this light shine. Don't put it under a basket. Please pass this on to >everyone you possibly can; help spread the God's love around and help >rid the world of selfishness. Help people understand that in God's world, >we are one... we are brothers and sisters... it is not me and them, or us >and them. We are all one. >"Throw your dreams into space like a kite, and you do not know what it >will bring back... maybe... a renewed life, a worthy friend, a forgotten >love, a wiser you, >a renewed country, a rebounding and spiritually revitalized life..."
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