Good People

As much as People (capital 'p' to emphasize the group rather than the magazine) say that the world is spiraling downward, and that people as a whole are becoming more and more selfish, it is good to know every once in a while that People can be proved wrong.

I was working on Halloween (it never ceases to amaze me how busy my work tends to be that day... there is something so wrong about that) doing a blood drive at the Valley Fair Mall, in Salt Lake City. Where me and my crew were located was a sort of dug out courtyard in the center of the mall. It was different.

Now, there is over two thousand pounds of equipment that we need to use in order to do a blood drive, and out of everyone that I was working with, I was the only one who could lift. One of my crew members could not carry anything because he strained his back doing something, and the other has mono and is not suppose to but any undue stress on her liver or spleen for fear of it rupturing. Getting stuff down into the pit was easy, gravity really does help in situations like that. However, when it came to cleaning up and trying to get stuff out of the pit I was presented with quite a difficulty. I could not lift three hundred pound stations up the stairs by myself.

Luckily, I did not have to. Since we were in the mall, and it was Halloween, there were a lot of people around trick-or-treating. Two very nice Latino gentlemen saw me standing at the bottom of the staircase contemplating the best way for me to do it, and came down and just picked it up like it was nothing and carried it to the top. They did this not only for that station, but for the other three stations I had, and a cart that we use to carry stuff. It was amazing. After how busy the day had been I was honestly on the point of tears with gratitude. I thanked them and they just smiled and rejoined their families.

Later that day (in many ways it was an ill-fated day, but so many miracles came of it that I'm sure it all balanced out) The van I was driving, towing the trailer with all of our supplies, ran out of gas. This was entirely my fault since I know that it had been a busy week, and I totally spaced checking out the gas situation before I left Ogden to go to the drive. Still, knowing that it was my fault seemed to vex my mood even more than if it had been a freak accident. Anyway, we manage to suck on fumes and limp to a gas station. We get enough gas to get home, but in the process, I managed to get the van and trailer thoroughly stuck in this tiny corner gas station. It had a whole bunch of those stupid little cement barriers, that no matter how hard I tried to maneuver, I could not get around. I felt so stupid, pulling forward than backing up then accidentally torquing my trailer. It was terrible.

On the side of the gas station there was a guy who had been watching me struggle for like twenty minutes, and after a little chuckle asked if he could help. Crying because of sheer frustration at my complete and utter inability to back up a stupid trailer I said that he was more than welcome to it. Within a matter of minutes he had me out of the gas station and onto the road pointed in the direction of the interstate. As I professed my gratitude, he just chuckled and said that something similar had happened to him a week ago and that he was glad that he could help someone get out of a similar situation just as someone had helped him.

So there you have it. I met three very extraordinary guys all in one day. I do not know any of their names, but I know that they helped me out of situations that I never would have found a way out of on my own. It only took them a couple of minutes, and they have most likely already forgotten about it. But I will not forget. I doubt they realize what an impact they had on me, or how much they really saved the day. I never thought when I woke up that morning that I would have to opportunity to meet three heroes before I went to bed that night.

Because of their example I can remember to not be in such a rush. I can remember to take a couple seconds out of my day to help someone. Even if it is something simple, you never know what impact you could have on those around you.

The People who say that there are no good people, are obviously those individuals who do not interact with people. There are many many astounding people in the world that help improve our living conditions and enrich our lives on a daily basis. It is all a matter of recognizing it and then giving it back.