On Close Calls and Kind Strangers
This morning I almost got into an accident on the freeway. I was in the left of the two right lines getting onto the 15 N from the 215 W. Someone decided to come into my lane and not check his blind spot.
I didn’t even have time to honk when I saw it happening. I quickly looked right and made sure it was clear. I turned to the right way too hard. Then I had to correct it, and at 65mph, this doesn’t go incredibly smoothly. So when I tried to correct it, my car ended up on the left two wheels, then on the right two wheels. I rocked from side to side going around 60mph getting onto a freeway on ramp. All because someone didn’t check his blind spot.
I am so, so grateful I was able to correct my car. I could’ve rolled over. I could’ve hit someone to my right. Someone could’ve hit me from behind as I tried to correct myself. So many different outcomes could’ve happened. I was really shaken up on the rest of my drive to work, but was mostly calmed down by the time I got there, just overcome with gratitude that nothing happened to me or my car.
Then on the way to the elevator in the parking garage, a middle-aged gentleman went out of his way multiple times to be helpful to me.
The elevators in the garage are behind a set of glass doors. This man had gotten into that little elevator room 10-15 seconds before me. He had a rolling suitcase and something else in his other arm. As I approached the door from the outside a few moments later, he sort of ran a few feet backwards to open the door for me! He totally went out of his way to do that. It wasn’t like we both got to the door at the same time and he held it open. The door had already closed and he backtracked to open it for me. Then he let me into and out of the elevator first.
We went up to level 1, and of course he let me off the elevator first. As I headed to the next set of glass doors to get out of the elevator area, he’s behind me and says, “let me get the door for you!” And I said “oh wow you don’t have to do that, you have a suitcase and stuff! Thank you so much.” He smiled and said, “it’s not a problem!” I had every intention of getting the door for him because of all his stuff.
This dude went out of his way and above and beyond so many times in a three-minute time frame. I was impressed and surprised. It wasn’t necessary at all, and I had less in my hands than he did.
I got to the elevators inside my work building (yeah, I have to do a lot of elevators downtown) before he did, so I held the doors open button until he got there. A small gesture after all he did.
To him, these gestures probably weren’t a big deal. But they were unusual in my experience, and I am still thinking about his overt kindness. I look at this as an added item of gratitude so that I haven’t been focused all day on my close call on the road this morning. I’ll be on the lookout for ways to pass it on.
I didn’t even have time to honk when I saw it happening. I quickly looked right and made sure it was clear. I turned to the right way too hard. Then I had to correct it, and at 65mph, this doesn’t go incredibly smoothly. So when I tried to correct it, my car ended up on the left two wheels, then on the right two wheels. I rocked from side to side going around 60mph getting onto a freeway on ramp. All because someone didn’t check his blind spot.
I am so, so grateful I was able to correct my car. I could’ve rolled over. I could’ve hit someone to my right. Someone could’ve hit me from behind as I tried to correct myself. So many different outcomes could’ve happened. I was really shaken up on the rest of my drive to work, but was mostly calmed down by the time I got there, just overcome with gratitude that nothing happened to me or my car.
Then on the way to the elevator in the parking garage, a middle-aged gentleman went out of his way multiple times to be helpful to me.
The elevators in the garage are behind a set of glass doors. This man had gotten into that little elevator room 10-15 seconds before me. He had a rolling suitcase and something else in his other arm. As I approached the door from the outside a few moments later, he sort of ran a few feet backwards to open the door for me! He totally went out of his way to do that. It wasn’t like we both got to the door at the same time and he held it open. The door had already closed and he backtracked to open it for me. Then he let me into and out of the elevator first.
We went up to level 1, and of course he let me off the elevator first. As I headed to the next set of glass doors to get out of the elevator area, he’s behind me and says, “let me get the door for you!” And I said “oh wow you don’t have to do that, you have a suitcase and stuff! Thank you so much.” He smiled and said, “it’s not a problem!” I had every intention of getting the door for him because of all his stuff.
This dude went out of his way and above and beyond so many times in a three-minute time frame. I was impressed and surprised. It wasn’t necessary at all, and I had less in my hands than he did.
I got to the elevators inside my work building (yeah, I have to do a lot of elevators downtown) before he did, so I held the doors open button until he got there. A small gesture after all he did.
To him, these gestures probably weren’t a big deal. But they were unusual in my experience, and I am still thinking about his overt kindness. I look at this as an added item of gratitude so that I haven’t been focused all day on my close call on the road this morning. I’ll be on the lookout for ways to pass it on.
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