this made me cry....

I don't know if this true or just another fabrication made to pull at the heart strings...

Take a moment and read this. One of my Christian Friends sent this too me, she is a good person, doesn't wear her religion on her sleave, just acts as she believes Jesus would want her too...

Anyway, this tells us, well, me, I guess, that there are people out there who sometimes need a wink, a kind hello, or just a smile....


The Cab Ride

I arrived at the address and honked the horn. After waiting a few minutes, I walked to the door and knocked.. 'Just a minute', answered a
frail, elderly voice. I could hear something being dragged across the floor.


After a long pause, the door opened. A small woman in her 90's stood before me. She was wearing a print dress and a pillbox hat with a veil pinned
on it, like somebody out of a 1940's movie.


By her side was a small nylon suitcase.

The apartment looked as if no one had lived in it for years. All the furniture was covered with sheets.


There were no clocks on the walls, no knickknacks or utensils on the counters. In the corner was a cardboard box filled with photos and glassware.


'Would you carry my bag out to the car?' she said. I took the suitcase to the cab, then returned to assist the woman.


She took my arm and we walked slowly toward the curb.


She kept thanking me for my kindness. 'It's nothing', I told her.. 'I just try to treat my passengers the way I would want my mother to be treated.'


'Oh, you're such a good boy, she said. When we got in the cab, she gave me an address and then asked, 'Could you drive through downtown?'


'It's not the shortest way,' I answered quickly..


'Oh, I don't mind,' she said. 'I'm in no hurry. I'm on my way to a hospice.


I looked in the rear-view mirror. Her eyes were glistening. 'I don't have any family left,' she continued in a soft voice.. 'The doctor says I don't have very long.' I quietly reached over and shut off the meter.


'What route would you like me to take?' I asked.

For the next two hours, we drove through the city. She showed me the building where she had once worked as an elevator operator.


We drove through the neighborhood where she and her husband had lived when they were newlyweds She had me pull up in front of a furniture warehouse that had once been a ballroom where she had gone dancing as a girl.


Sometimes she'd ask me to slow in front of a particular building or corner and would sit staring into the darkness, saying nothing.


As the first hint of sun was creasing the horizon,she suddenly said, 'I'm tired. Let's go now'.


We drove in silence to the address she had given me. It was a low building, like a small convalescent home, with a driveway that passed under a portico.

Two orderlies came out to the cab as soon as we pulled up.

They were Solicitous and intent, watching her every move. They must have been expecting her.


I opened the trunk and took the small suitcase to the door. The woman was already seated in a wheelchair.


'How much do I owe you?' She asked, reaching into her purse.


'Nothing,' I said.


'You have to make a living,' she answered.


'There are other passengers,' I responded.


Almost without thinking, I bent and gave her a hug. She held onto me tightly.


'You gave an old woman a little moment of joy,' she said. 'Thank you.'


I squeezed her hand, and then walked into the dim morning light.. Behind me, a door shut. It was the sound of the closing of a life..


I didn't pick up any more passengers that shift. I drove aimlessly lost in thought. For the rest of that day, I could hardly talk. What if that woman had gotten an angry driver, or one who was impatient to end his shift? What if I had refused to take the run, or had honked once, then driven away?


On a quick review, I don't think that I have done anything more important in my life.


We're conditioned to think that our lives revolve around great moments.


But great moments often catch us unaware-beautifully wrapped in what others may consider a small one.


It's the moments like this, if they happen to you, that make it worthwhile....

Thank you for sharing this.

:hug:

n/t

thx for the read

:cry:

sheesh, make it a little believable

here's what really happened-- cab driver picks up little old lady, notices packed-up apartment, she says she's going into hospice, he took the two hour "long route" to the hospice and billed 'em $150 for the ride (this is close to something that actually happened to me, so yeah i'm bitter) and then he tips his friends that there's an empty apartment to check out "maybe there's some antiques or some silver service we can pick up"

there are countries where i might have believed this could happen, the usa is not one of them though

if i've alienated EVERYBODY so much that i can't even get a ride to fucking hospice from a friend or family member, i'll rent a fucking limo for that last ride, what are you saving for anyway at that point?

cab drivers would go broke if they gave free rides to old ladies, ripping off older women is one of their most profitable hustles

It doesn't have to be believable.

Sad to say.

or "glass half full" or something like that?

;-)

thanks for that.

;)

Where to start...
"if i've alienated EVERYBODY so much that i can't even get a ride to fucking hospice from a friend or family member, i'll rent a fucking limo for that last ride, what are you saving for anyway at that point?"

Last one first -- It's entirely believable an elderly woman is pinching pennies and CAN'T just "rent a limo". If you don't know any poor elderly, we can probably find dozens who live within blocks of you.

There are also elderly that have no family, either because they never had children of outlived their spouses/siblings. It's also entirely believable that some elderly person living alone has no "friends". They aren't like kids in elementary school who always have a new "best friend".

It may be fiction, it may be true, but it's more than plausible, I'll bet there are many elderly on any given day who take a very lonely one-way ride to the hospice.

C'mon man. :shrug:

Myself and two friends were going out to dinner after a long day at the Javits Center. It was our first time in the city since August of 2001. The cabbie was originally from Eastern Europe, can't remember what country. We talked on the way to the restaurant. I said I thought the city seemed sad and not like I'd left her in August, but who could blame her, everyone in the city seemed very subdued. He told us about that day from his experience and our human bond by the end of the ride was so strong that when we got to our destination he got out and hugged each of us in turn and would not accept the fare. True story, believe it or don't. And I have had many lovely cab drivers in NYC, just never one before or since that I cried with or hugged.

just a small act of kindness can make such a change in someone's life. Random acts of kindness, it would make for such a better world.

It's playing it forward...

don't old women have a group that cares for each other?

Did she say anything about having children? I'm curious.

I remember when my MIL was getting on. Everything about her was diminishing. A lot of her friends, people she had been very kind over the years, started to leave her out of the circle of friends. I think it was because they saw in Betty what was in store for themselves and they didn't want to be reminded of this mortal coil...

But it's hard if you have no family to have a support system.

Thanks WC

It's not impossible to believe this didn't happen some place...

It made me cry then...

Just as it is now.

:hug:

Thanks, sweetie...

I can tell that really had happened. I've known several writers who have sometimes driven cabs.

:cry: it's a good reminder to try and show some kindness to others, to care about another human being. It can make all the difference in the world to someone.