Sitting in a coffee shop a young man who is having trouble getting across busy Hammond Road on foot was just offered a ride to school in this subzero and windy weather by a total stranger. He had the barista put his order on hold to run the young man over to the charter school.
There really are people who are willing to step in and lend a hand. I am reminded of the neighbor of my brother who dropped me off at this very coffee shop when he saw me walking down the road. I had no problems accepting the help. This young man did. We teach our children to avoid strangers. And while the young man was at least 15 and should have been able to care for himself, this is weather that could fell the hardiest. It is not a time to blindly follow rote learning.
Avoiding strangers when you are a child under 10 who does not know that there are good and bad in all people is a smart idea. But when you are a teen, and granted do not know EVERYTHING, you can use you can use your brain to learn from each experience. Life is risk. The trick is to know the foolish from the calculated risk. Foolish would have been to continue exposure to these elements.
Kudos to the young man for controlling foolish pride. And kudos to the older man for his kindness in a cold world.
Yes. I know there are preditors... but too many people saw him leave with the young man. And today I prefer to keep my heart warm.
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