Help is Good

I have always been, ever since my earliest memories, a very self-reliant person. My family moved from Indianapolis to Cincinnati during the summer between second and third grade. Back in Indianapolis, we were scheduled to learn cursive writing in the coming school year. But in Cincinnati, they had already learned it in second grade.

I never told anyone that I didn’t know cursive writing. Not the teacher. Not the other students. Not my parents. I just decided that I would learn it, pronto! I did, and no one ever knew my about my little foray into self-reliance.

As I’ve grown, I’ve come to appreciate the fact that yes, I can do pretty much anything I want, but sometimes help is good.

This morning near the end of my 55 mile commute to Aliso Viejo, the Big Blue Beetle had a blow-out on the driver-side rear tire. I was shifting into fifth gear, northbound on the 5 during the busiest traffic of the day. The car handled wonderfully, and I pulled over to the shoulder without incident.

Now I’ve changed many tires over the years, so that is no real challenge. But with cars and trucks whizzing by at 60+ MPH, it’s intimidating.

So I pop open the trunk and (embarrassingly) examine the spare for the first time since I purchased the Beetle. It’s a full-size spare (amazing what those German engineers can do!). I start assembling the jack when a tow truck pulls over. The honorable Bernard Aguilar, servant of the Freeway Service Patrol offers to change the tire, at no cost. I could’ve argued that I was fine. Certainly I was capable of doing the job myself. Before I had a chance to object, he was changing the tire. Bernard made the job look easy, filled the spare with air (it was low…make a note to check the spares in the other cars), and in half the time it would’ve taken me I was back on the road. He wouldn’t even accept a tip. Was his help necessary? No, but it was very welcome.

So why should I be surprised when my day ends with help from a friend? Someone who listens, who cares, and who makes you think (even if your brain hurts afterwards). Yes, we self-reliant types can go it alone, but help is good… maybe even better than good.

Thank-you, stranger. Thank-you, friend. Your help was very welcome.