I think most of us would like to think we PIF because of our generous natures. We talk about the things we've PIF'd and the joy we've given to others, sometimes we drop a blurb in about ourselves.
I was thinking about PIF, not just the forum/thread but the term in relation to the world in general. I think back to the ONE PIF I remember and will never forget. It was a little thing for the man who helped me but to me, it was the light at the end of a rather horrid tunnel.
I had just moved to a small town out in the middle of nowhere. Divorce the whole nine yards. I knew noone, and I mean NOBODY. It was about 8 or 9 years ago when I was in college for the nursing program, I picked my daughter up from the sitters (she was 10 or 11). It was December, I was broke, I wasn't wondering how I was going to do Christmas, no it was more base than that, I was wondering how I was going to get the gas to continue going to school, let alone pay that damned electric bill. My car insurance was due and the tires on my 4WD where bald, the storm clouds where gathering, literally. I could see the black clouds billowing on the horizon. I lived 42 miles from town, out in the middle of BFE. No I lived in EAST BFE!
About halfway through the drive home, stressed, cold and miserable and soooooooo tired I just about couldn't FEEL anymore, the unthinkable happened. The front right tire on my 4WD blew with snow starting. You know the snow, BIG fluffly flakes that cover things FAST. I was doing 45 MPH. You'ld be amazed at how fast that is when the snow is coming down and you have a blown mudder. I managed to get the truck over to the side of the road. Sweating, shivering and damn near scared out of my skin. Of course I can't SHOW this because my daughter is in the truck, but my insides are basically Jelly......
I got out of the truck and looked at the tire, it's just full dark, snowing like mad, I have a spare, but it's flat /sigh and my jack won't reach high enough to jack the truck. The tire has RIPPED about an 1/8 of the way around the rim. I stood there and just stared, I had no CLUE what to do. OUT in the MIDDLE of nowhere, nothing around, snow coming down, and so QUIET. When it snows like that the world itself is so very QUIET, dunno if anyone has ever noticed that. My daughter at this point still thinks this is a grand adventure......I mean after all her mom is here, what could go wrong?
I just about started crying. I mean hell I'm alone, snowing, almost no gas, no money, life just SUCKS at this point!!! WTH am I going to do?
At about this point, a set of headlights comes slowly down the road goes past, and goes out of sight. I mean the snow was comeing down so thick, I don't think you could have seen a quarter of a mile away. I don't know how long a time had passed since the car had gone past but out of the snow loomed a set of headlights, scared the BEEJEEBERS out of me, pulling in behind my truck. A big and I mean BIG man got out of a tiny little chevy luv pick up. Walked up to the front of my truck where my daughter and I where standing. He took one look at the front end of my GMC, shrugged and said, "Ain't got the gear to fix it, I'll take you home".
Well you know, big and I mean BIG hairy man, little pick-up, middle of a snow storm, dead truck......anyone hearing banjo's yet? I sure as hell was. But what do I do? I dont' have a choice. I can't stay in a snow storm with my child, and of all the mundane things to happen at this point she's getting hungry.
So yep, we did, we went and got into this guys pick up. He DID in fact run us home, never really said much the whole drive, about 30 minutes cause of the snow, other than to ask for directions. He dropped us off at the house wihtout a word then headed out.
I get in the house and OMFG I've left my purse in the truck, the keys all the money I had in the world. I made my daughter some tomato soup and a grilled cheese sammich and sat her down to watch a movie. I walked into my bedroom and CRIED. OMG how I cried. WTH could go wrong next? I got the kiddo together, warmed up, showered and in to bed, then I went to bed and I finally cried myself to sleep while a good foot and a half of snow proceeded to build up. I think I slept the sleep of the totally exhasted, emotional and physical.
The next morning, I looked out. The kiddo was up and wanting to play in the snow. I have a days reprieve. No school today. She got dressed in a few pairs of pants and all of her T-shirts I swear and went out to play. I walked out with her, I mean it IS beautiful. I stood just looking at the world, I was SO tired. I heard a sound at the base of the driveway WTH? That sounds like MY truck.
I looked down the driveway, sure enough, it WAS my truck. That man had waited until day time, and gone back for it. He pulled it into my driveway, with a friend following behind. He got out, walked up to me, with never a word spoken, handed me my keys, purse and an envelope. Walked over got into his friends rig, waved and drove off.
Now I'm standing there a bit non-plussed. I mean how do you answer that? I walked over and looked at my truck.....am I seeing this right? There were new tires on it........I don't mean tires someone had laying around, I mean NEW tires. How the hell did he DO that? He didnt have the TIME.......he must have gone back and gotten it the night before and taken it straight to a tire shop. But there wasn't enough GAS in it to get it to a shop. You guessed it, a full tank of gas. In the envelope was an address. It was for my new part time job. While I struggled after that, I never again struggled to that extent.
To this day I can't think of that span of days without tears. I'm no longer running away from a bad marriage with no money wondering where my life is going to lead. I'm now a nurse with stellar credit, money, heck I have a new car, and almost no bills. My daughter is starting college. Life is good.
I try to pay that kindness forward every chance I get. In small ways and sometimes, in large ways.
How about you guys? What's your PIF story, who do you remember helping you when life was less than stellar?
I was thinking about PIF, not just the forum/thread but the term in relation to the world in general. I think back to the ONE PIF I remember and will never forget. It was a little thing for the man who helped me but to me, it was the light at the end of a rather horrid tunnel.
I had just moved to a small town out in the middle of nowhere. Divorce the whole nine yards. I knew noone, and I mean NOBODY. It was about 8 or 9 years ago when I was in college for the nursing program, I picked my daughter up from the sitters (she was 10 or 11). It was December, I was broke, I wasn't wondering how I was going to do Christmas, no it was more base than that, I was wondering how I was going to get the gas to continue going to school, let alone pay that damned electric bill. My car insurance was due and the tires on my 4WD where bald, the storm clouds where gathering, literally. I could see the black clouds billowing on the horizon. I lived 42 miles from town, out in the middle of BFE. No I lived in EAST BFE!
About halfway through the drive home, stressed, cold and miserable and soooooooo tired I just about couldn't FEEL anymore, the unthinkable happened. The front right tire on my 4WD blew with snow starting. You know the snow, BIG fluffly flakes that cover things FAST. I was doing 45 MPH. You'ld be amazed at how fast that is when the snow is coming down and you have a blown mudder. I managed to get the truck over to the side of the road. Sweating, shivering and damn near scared out of my skin. Of course I can't SHOW this because my daughter is in the truck, but my insides are basically Jelly......
I got out of the truck and looked at the tire, it's just full dark, snowing like mad, I have a spare, but it's flat /sigh and my jack won't reach high enough to jack the truck. The tire has RIPPED about an 1/8 of the way around the rim. I stood there and just stared, I had no CLUE what to do. OUT in the MIDDLE of nowhere, nothing around, snow coming down, and so QUIET. When it snows like that the world itself is so very QUIET, dunno if anyone has ever noticed that. My daughter at this point still thinks this is a grand adventure......I mean after all her mom is here, what could go wrong?
I just about started crying. I mean hell I'm alone, snowing, almost no gas, no money, life just SUCKS at this point!!! WTH am I going to do?
At about this point, a set of headlights comes slowly down the road goes past, and goes out of sight. I mean the snow was comeing down so thick, I don't think you could have seen a quarter of a mile away. I don't know how long a time had passed since the car had gone past but out of the snow loomed a set of headlights, scared the BEEJEEBERS out of me, pulling in behind my truck. A big and I mean BIG man got out of a tiny little chevy luv pick up. Walked up to the front of my truck where my daughter and I where standing. He took one look at the front end of my GMC, shrugged and said, "Ain't got the gear to fix it, I'll take you home".
Well you know, big and I mean BIG hairy man, little pick-up, middle of a snow storm, dead truck......anyone hearing banjo's yet? I sure as hell was. But what do I do? I dont' have a choice. I can't stay in a snow storm with my child, and of all the mundane things to happen at this point she's getting hungry.
So yep, we did, we went and got into this guys pick up. He DID in fact run us home, never really said much the whole drive, about 30 minutes cause of the snow, other than to ask for directions. He dropped us off at the house wihtout a word then headed out.
I get in the house and OMFG I've left my purse in the truck, the keys all the money I had in the world. I made my daughter some tomato soup and a grilled cheese sammich and sat her down to watch a movie. I walked into my bedroom and CRIED. OMG how I cried. WTH could go wrong next? I got the kiddo together, warmed up, showered and in to bed, then I went to bed and I finally cried myself to sleep while a good foot and a half of snow proceeded to build up. I think I slept the sleep of the totally exhasted, emotional and physical.
The next morning, I looked out. The kiddo was up and wanting to play in the snow. I have a days reprieve. No school today. She got dressed in a few pairs of pants and all of her T-shirts I swear and went out to play. I walked out with her, I mean it IS beautiful. I stood just looking at the world, I was SO tired. I heard a sound at the base of the driveway WTH? That sounds like MY truck.
I looked down the driveway, sure enough, it WAS my truck. That man had waited until day time, and gone back for it. He pulled it into my driveway, with a friend following behind. He got out, walked up to me, with never a word spoken, handed me my keys, purse and an envelope. Walked over got into his friends rig, waved and drove off.
Now I'm standing there a bit non-plussed. I mean how do you answer that? I walked over and looked at my truck.....am I seeing this right? There were new tires on it........I don't mean tires someone had laying around, I mean NEW tires. How the hell did he DO that? He didnt have the TIME.......he must have gone back and gotten it the night before and taken it straight to a tire shop. But there wasn't enough GAS in it to get it to a shop. You guessed it, a full tank of gas. In the envelope was an address. It was for my new part time job. While I struggled after that, I never again struggled to that extent.
To this day I can't think of that span of days without tears. I'm no longer running away from a bad marriage with no money wondering where my life is going to lead. I'm now a nurse with stellar credit, money, heck I have a new car, and almost no bills. My daughter is starting college. Life is good.
I try to pay that kindness forward every chance I get. In small ways and sometimes, in large ways.
How about you guys? What's your PIF story, who do you remember helping you when life was less than stellar?
