Many years ago, when I was fresh out of school and working in Denver, I was driving to my parents' home in Missouri for Christmas.I stopped at a gas station about 50 miles from Oklahoma City, where I was planning to stop and visit a friend.While I was standing in line at the cash register, I said hello to an older couple who were also paying for gas.
I took off, but had gone only a few miles when black smoke poured from the back of my car.I stopped and wondered what I should do.A car pulled up behind me.It was the couple I had spoken to at the gas station.They said they would take me to my friend's.We chatted on the way to the city, and when I got out of the car, the husband gave me his business card.
I wrote him and his wife a thankyou note for helping me.Soon afterward, I received a Christmas present from them.Their note that came with it said that helping me had made their holidays meaningful.
Years later, I drove to a meeting in a nearby town in the morning.In late afternoon I returned to my car and found that I'd left the lights on all day, and the battery was dead.Then I noticed that the Friendly Ford dealership — a shop selling cars — was right next door.I walked over and found two salesmen in the showroom.
