I participated in a RAOK today

**madhen** · 08-30-2008, 01:13 AM

I went out to dinner with a friend, and when we returned to our respective cars, there was a guy in an SUV parked behind my truck, and he was obviously having car trouble. My friend and I helped him push his vehicle UP a hill in the parking lot to an area where it would be out of the way and easy for a tow truck to get to it. I have to admit, when he mentioned he wanted to park it behind a hotel, in a kind of remote part of the lot, scenes from Silence of the Lambs flashed through my head. I'm just cynical, I guess.

I kept thinking of the part where the serial killer kidnaps a woman by acting like he has an injury and getting the woman to help him load a sofa into his van.

All turned out well, however, and his lovely wife and two lovely dogs both came out to thank us for taking the time to help. It made me feel very glad that I stopped to help, but also a little sad that nowadays, it IS unusual for anyone to take time out of their schedules to help out a stranger. We are either too busy or too suspicious to take the time.

So, even though the RAOK was mine, the benefit was mine, as well, as it made me feel a little more like a human being afterward, and made me think this family will probably remember my little town as the one with the friendly residents.