Yesterday was a cool day, Fall has definitely made its presence here in Colorado. This week I’ve been reacting negatively to what seems to be a return of Giardia. The doctors tell me that this intestinal parasite has a 20% return rate and it appears I am one out of the five. So I was at home when Kristy called and asked if I wanted to take a ride out to the farm where she and her roommates get a bag of fresh grown vegetables each week or so, I obliged.

She picked me up a few minutes later and we were off. Barreling down the most interesting stretch of concrete and commerce in Colorado … Colfax. We made a right on Chambers after about twenty-five minutes of driving and the front left tire of her Ford Focus made a pop and then thud thud thud sound. She veered the car to the left hand turn lane and pulled into a retirement community parking lot.

I’ve had experience changing tires so I walked out of the car confidently and grabbed the jack and tire iron out of the trunk of her car. The sun was creeping down the sky, almost dropping behind the mountains, and it was becoming cold. I instructed Kristy to just wait in the car because we were poorly prepared for a scenario like this, no gloves, no hats, no jackets.

I warmed up my hands and placed the tire iron around one of the lugs and cranked. Nothing happened, I couldn’t turn either of the lugs on the tire. I forced all my weight behind the iron and tried with all my might but nothing was going to budge. This was a little precarious because it was after 7 o’clock and most of the tire shops had closed. I began to worry a little until behind me I heard a voice. It was the voice of a young black male with a strong disposition and confidence in his swagger. He asked me if I needed any help and I shrugged it off like I had it all taken care of. He proceeded to tell me that he had worked at a tire shop years ago and knew a thing or two about changing tires. He grabbed the tire iron and effortlessly wrenched three of the four lug nuts off the bolts. All the while he did this, he was speaking with his girlfriend on the phone. He mentioned to me that he was going to run back to his apartment (because he aparently lived very close) to see if he had a larger and more sturdy tire iron.

About fifteen minutes passed and I was losing faith in this stranger that offered a helping hand. He returned with a larger tire iron and finished changing the tire with ease. The jack was let down onto the spare and we were left to be on our way.

This left me with the uncomfortable notion that I should throw him some money for his assistance but I didn’t feel like he was doing it for money. If he was doing it for money I am pretty sure he wouldn’t have stopped or wouldn’t have ran to his apartment to grab another tire iron. This was the random kindness of a stranger who’s name I didn’t even know. This was a favor I needed to return to someone else. It’s funny how the world works this way. This was a good reminder that there is something bigger than me at work in the world and I am foolish to think that my life is completely in my own hands.