TRAVEL STORIES
Finding Hospitality at Home
A simple act of kindness on the I-95
Little deeds of kindness,
Little words of love,
Make our earth an Eden,
Like the heaven above. (Carney)
June’s monthly challenge made me lick my lips. I have hundreds of travel stories of strangers showing empathy and compassion. I have several more of me forming bonds with total strangers at so many different places. I could probably submit multiple entries for this monthly challenge.
Why did I choose to narrate this particular story then?
During all my encounters with hospitality — a recurring theme was discernable. All these strangers were joined by a simple yet profound factor — innate human nature is filled with compassion.
Sure, humans are often corrupted and rain malice and havoc on our fellow humans. However, I believe that at the core of every human heart, lies compassion towards fellow human beings of any caste, creed, or religion.
So, I narrate a simple interaction with a group of strangers — an incident, memorable yet unmemorable. It is memorable for the emotions it invokes in me to this day. Yet, it is so unmemorable, that I do not recall the exact location where it occurred. It happened somewhere on the I-95 while driving from Boston to DC. I had forgotten about it till I discovered a photo on my phone (see the image above).
A picture speaks a thousand words! While my wife managed a tired smile for the camera, my kids’ faces reveal the ordeal preceding this photograph.
It had been less than a month since we had relocated to the U.S. as a family. On the very first opportunity, — a Labor Day weekend, we hit the road. I was eager to reconnect with my old college friends in Maryland while my family — well they just wanted to discover America!
I was about to learn a valuable lesson in traveling. Spontaneity and unplanned travel with kids do not go well. We ventured on the I-95 in a car that I purchased a week ago. Oh, by the way, I had not purchased any AAA membership either — talk about being unprepared. Barring the traffic, things were going smoothly, till the car started acting up. In the early hours of Saturday, we were left stranded on the roadside.
Normally in my country of birth, if someone sees a family stranded on a highway, they stop to help. It does not happen here in the US — possibly because of the highly organized tow/ assistance services and the vigilant police patrolling and monitoring the roads.
But when shit hits the fan, at times one encounters a brain fade. It didn’t occur to me that I could call the police or even dial 911. We being new to the States, knew nothing about leveraging these services. My kids sat in the car while my wife and I took turns working a miracle using our rudimentary mechanic skills.
Pretty soon the kids were both hungry and thirsty — turns out we had not packed enough of edibles or water for the trip. We had planned on eating breakfast at one of the pitstops on I-95.
Then I saw someone stop — he didn’t have any wings, but I am sure he was an angel sent from the heavens. He took stock of the situation and realized we were newbies in the country. He called a tow truck and gave us a ride in his car to his Dunkin’ Donuts at the nearest pit stop (Again I fail to recall the location).
We were all fed a hearty breakfast accompanied by some much-needed coffee. The kids played inside the establishment premises while my wife dozed off in a corner. We spent a few hours waiting for our car to be fixed. The staff at the establishment was kind, supportive, and friendly. They did not mind the noise the kids were making, and there were hardly any other customers.
Soon the car was ready. The staff packed us some donuts for the road. Despite our insistence, they refused to charge us anything for the breakfast or the snacks.
To some of the readers, the story might not seem profound. Yet, this simple act of kindness invokes deep emotions in me. It also inspires me to never miss an opportunity to help someone in need.
For this monthly challenge, I enjoyed reading these wonderful stories by JoAnn Ryan, Michele Maize, and Jewel Allen.
