Sometimes, a person needs help.  Your car won’t start and needs a jump; you need a ride somewhere; you are sick and you need a few things from the store or maybe you simply need to bounce an idea or a heartache off of someone.  There are people who don’t mind asking for help from a friend or a complete stranger.  And then there are folks who will never ask for anything, even when they really need it.

On this particular day, she was walking down a main street in our town, and he was following behind her aggressively, yet with a little distance.  Anyone paying attention could see he was up to no good.  She was walking fast with her arms wrapped tightly around her waist. He was yelling and slapping his coke bottle against his fist.  I turned the car around to follow and they had already crossed the busy street.  When I was finally able to get across, I pulled the car over to her side, rolled down the window  and said to the young lady, “Honey, do you need help?”  She came running to my car and said, “Please, can I get in?”  I tossed stuff into the backseat.  She was broken.  Tears were streaming down her face as he shouted at her, “That’s it, just get in the car with her.”  I wasn’t sure what was going on, so I just drove away with my new passenger.  She said he was angry because her car had broken down, but that it wasn’t her fault.  I asked if I could call 911, she said no, that her dad was on his way.  She directed me to her apartment complex.  I asked if she wanted to wait with me until her dad arrived, she said no.  She wanted to get into her apartment, that the guy following her did not have a key and couldn’t get inside.  I wanted to help her or comfort her in some way.  So I simply said, “You have done nothing wrong.  This is not your fault and you do not deserve to be treated this way.” She thanked me repeatedly, assured me she would be fine, and hurried toward her apartment.  I left feeling I had not done enough, but that hopefully I had at least removed her from immediate danger.  I drove away thinking, “Lord, protect her from harm”.

We need each other.  Family, friends, acquaintances and strangers.  We will all encounter challenging times in our lives and we need to allow others to be there for us. On the flip side of that, we need to make ourselves aware of what’s going on around us.  Someone may truly need you today, but they will not ask.

(  DO NOT put yourself in harm’s way to help someone.  Call 911! Like I probably should have done for this young lady.  Look for my upcoming blog on self-defense! 😉 )