Do As I Say, Not as I Do

Ever since I was a young driver I have always known this rule:

Don't Pick Up Hitchhikers!!!

Common sense. Right? I mean everyone knows that a hitchhiker could be some deranged lunatic, right?

Like an escaped convict

Or an ax murderer

Or this guy

Scary.

And you know what happens if you pick up some random guy on the side of the road.

Chaos

And a complete breakdown in the fiber of society

The world as we know it would cease to exist.

So it was a bit strange that I found myself in the circumstances I found myself today. Today was Library Day for the Blau crew, our designated day to head to the library to grab some summer reading fun. It is always a big production because there are seven kids with varying tastes. Luckily it gets easier and easier as the kids get older. And today was easier than most days because Hyrum is away at Cub Scout day camp, and Spencer decided to stay home since he just wanted to renew his Beatles book. So with two less kids in the crew we headed to the library and had a fairly low key experience. No one made too much noise or decided to rearrange the shelves of books. Success! But as we were going through the somewhat crazy process of checking out a man was leaving the library after getting his books and spending some time on the internet. He was a nice young man who looked to be about in his mid to late twenties, and he was making conversation with the librarian. As he walked out he mentioned that he was walking all the way to Dixon. Dixon? Seriously? Dixon was like twenty miles away, mostly on fairly busy highways with some spots having very little walk room. As we stared at him in shock he explained to all of us that he had walked all the way here, so it was no problem walking all the way back. He said that he had to do it because he needed to finish his work for college. None of this was said with any amount of anxiety or with any hope that any of us would do anything for him. He was just stating the facts.

We let him go. And I felt terrible. My head was telling me that I should not volunteer to drive strangers through the countryside. Even if it was the middle of the day. I don't watch horror movies, but I've read enough synopses to know what happens to old ladies when they pick up guys on the side of the road. Spoiler alert: It usually doesn't end up so good for the ladies. But even as my head was telling me this, my heart was telling me that I needed to run out and help this guy. I had a fairly open schedule and the ability to make the drive. Was I seriously going to sit by and let some guy walk FOUR hours to get home? I just couldn't do it. The man seemed friendly and hard working. I needed to help him. 

I told myself that I would stop and offer to help if I passed him on the way home. We finished getting our books and signing everyone up for the summer reading program. Then we loaded up the car and made a game plan. Laney had invited a lady with several young children to come by this afternoon so that her kids could play with our younger kids, so I planned on dropping Laney and the younger kiddos off at the house. Savannah would stay with me so that I wasn't alone with the guy. She was going to hold onto her cell phone and have it at the ready in case she needed to call 911 super fast and get us some help if things went sour. And then we were going to take this young man home. The plan was made, so the Blau caravan headed home.

We were headed up Frog Hill in Waynesville and we were very close to Mr. Frog when we spotted the walker. He wasn't even attempting to hitch a ride. He just had his backpack on and his head down as he headed up the hill. Luckily for some reason the traffic was unusually slow, so there was no one behind me. I pulled off to the side and asked him if he wanted a ride. He did. Unfortunately on Frog Hill there is no median on the way heading up the hill. If I were on the opposite side of the highway I could have nicely pulled over and had him jump in. But on our side we were still sticking into the lanes of traffic. I pulled over as much as I could, but that made up jammed into the protective guardrails, so he had quite the devil of a time trying to squeeze into the van. But he made it, and after dropping off everyone but Savannah we were on our way.

Now here's where things could get tricky. I am super, super shy and could be close to the world's worst conversationalist. What in the world was I going to say to this guy? Luckily he saved the day because he was a talker. And man ... what an amazing story he had to tell. He was a young man who had grown up in a gang infested neighborhood in New Orleans, LA. Or Nawlons as he pronounced it for the whole conversation. It took me forever to realize where he was talking about. I thought he was talking about some super small town in Louisiana, and I was feeling shocked to hear how rampant crime was in such a small town. When I realized it was New Orleans, that made more sense. Growing up in such a dangerous environment, this young man decided that he was going to do whatever it would take to make sure and get an education, so he beat his neighborhood trends and got his high school degree and entered the army. He served for several years in the army with two tours in Afghanistan. Then he decided to get out of the military and get an advanced degree through one of the many programs offered in our area. A lot of the stuff he could do online, but there are some things that he needed to do in person because his degree was in kinesiology. His truck was currently not running, but he didn't want to miss any of his school, so he woke up super early today and walked all the way to Waynesville from his house outside of Dixon. He is all by himself with no family, and he didn't want to pay a taxi $50 for the trip, so he just decided to make it happen on his own. He said that he only has to do that once or twice a week, so it wasn't that big of a deal. Not that big of a deal? Really? I was sitting there as he spoke with my mouth open half the time. He was amazing! As he talked about his life and his hopes for the future I told him that he totally needed to write a book about it. It sounded like a Lifetime movie waiting to happen. He said that it hurt too much when he thought about his past, but I explained how much his story would mean to someone who was in a similar difficult situation. It would mean a lot to them to see that someone else had lived like that and was able to overcome. I'm not sure if he bought my words, but I hope so. Others need to hear his story. What an inspiring story of picking yourself up and making the most of your life, no matter what circumstances you find yourself in!

After an enjoyable ride (much faster than his four hour walk) I dropped him off at his house. He gave me a hug, and thanked me, telling me that he would find some way to repay me in the future. I told him not to worry about it and instead to find a way to pay it forward and help someone else in need sometime. It felt so good to have been able to help someone. And -- Bonus! -- I didn't end up dead on the side of the road. So it was a good afternoon.

So this was an inspiring experience for me. But for my kids who are currently driving and those who will be driving soon, the rule still stands --

Don't Pick Up Hitchhikers!!!