\u201cOne day a man saw an old lady, stranded on the side of the road, but even In the dim light of day, he could see she needed help. So he pulled up in front of her Mercedes and got out. His Pontiac was still sputtering when he approached her. Even with the smile on his face, she was worried. No one had stopped to help for the last hour or so. Was he going to hurt her? He didn\u2019t look safe; he looked poor and hungry.<\/p>\n
He could see that she was frightened, standing out there in the cold. He knew how she felt. It was that chill which only fear can put in you. He said, \u2018I\u2019m here to help you, ma\u2019am. Why don\u2019t you wait in the car where it\u2019s warm? By the way, my name is Bryan Anderson.\u2019 Well, all she had was a flat tire, but for an old lady, that was bad enough. Bryan crawled under the car looking for a place to putthe jack, skinning his knuckles a time or two.<\/p>\n
Soon he was able to change the tire.But he had to get dirty and his hands hurt. As he was tightening up the lug nuts, she rolled down the window and began to talk to him. She told him that she was from St. Louis and was only just passing through. She couldn\u2019t thank him enough for coming to her aid. Bryan just smiled as he closed her trunk. The lady asked how much she owed him. Any amount would have been all right with her.<\/p>\n
She already imagined all the awful things that could have happened had he not stopped. Bryan never thought twice about being paid. This was not a job to him. This was helping someone in need, and God knows there were plenty, who had given him a hand in the past. He told her that if she really wanted to pay him back, the next time she saw someone who needed help, she could give that person the assistance they needed, and Bryan added, \u2018And think of me.\u2019 He waited until she started her car and drove off.<\/p>\n
It had been a cold and depressing day, but he felt good as he headed for home, disappearing into the twilight. A few miles down the road the lady saw a small cafe. She went in to grab a bite to eat, and take the chill off before she made the last leg of her trip home. It was a dingy looking restaurant. Outside were two old gas pumps. The waitress came over and brought a clean towel to wipe her wet hair.She had a sweet smile, one that even being on her feet for the whole day couldn\u2019t erase. The lady noticed that the waitress was nearly eight months pregnant, but she never let the strain and aches change her attitude. The old lady wondered how someone who had so little could be so giving to a stranger. Then she remembered Bryan .. After the lady finished her meal, she paid with a hundred dollar bill.<\/p>\n
The waitress quickly went to get change for her hundred dollar bill, but the old lady had slipped right out the door. She was gone by the time the waitress came back. The waitress wondered where the lady could be. Then she noticed something written on the napkin.There were tears in her eyes when she read what the lady wrote: \u2018You don\u2019t owe me anything. I have been there too. Somebody once helped me out, the way I\u2019m helping you. If you really want to pay me back, here is what you do: Do not let this chain of love end with you.\u2019<\/p>\n
Under the napkin were 4 more $100 bills. Well, there were tables to clear, sugar bowls to fill, and people tos erve, but the waitress made it through another day. That night when she got home from work and climbed into bed, she was thinking about the money and what the lady had written. How could the lady have known how much she and her husband needed it?<\/p>\n
With the baby due next month, it was going to be hard\u2026. She knew how worried her husband was, and as he lay sleeping next to her, she gave him a soft kiss and whispered soft and low, \u2018Everything\u2019s going to be all right. I love you, Bryan Anderson.’\u201d<\/p>\n
There is an old saying: \u201cWhat goes around comes around.\u201d<\/p>\n
This beautiful story began as a story that appeared in the Chicken Soup for the Country Soul book in 1996, written by Jonnie Barnett and Rory Lee.<\/p>\n