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| The kids playing in a racing car while my own car was being fixed... |
As I was stuck in a traffic jam on Saturday morning, a driver on the opposite side waved at me and warned me I had a flat tyre. "What a kind gesture", I thought to myself. But that was only the beginning of a little "car troubles" adventure that made me realise there are still very good people in this world, and particularly in Ireland.
I quickly tried to find a petrol station to pump some air in the tyre and check if it was punctured. Unfortunately, at the closest petrol station was a giant truck blocking the air pump. While I was thinking about another place to go, another man knocked at my window to warn me I had a flat tyre... And told me there was a tyre place in the retail centre nearby.
When I arrived there, I discovered the place was closed. So I decided to drive to the other retail park on the other side of town, hoping my tyre would hang on until I reached my destination. Thankfully it did, and the mechanic from the garage told me he would ring me when it would be fixed. I just finished grabbing some lunch with the kids when the phone rang:
"Hi Anne, so, we checked your car, and it's definitely a puncture"
"OK..."
"But there's a problem, the machine we use has just broken, so unfortunately we can't fix your car. I've put some air in it, so you can drive a bit, at least to another tyre place"
Now, this was definitely not my day! Did I mention I was actually out to buy a present for a friend's birthday that was happening in the afternoon? Well, it was 2pm already, my car was still not fixed, and I didn't have any present bought.
Off I went to the next tyre place. At that stage, the kids were getting a little bit impatient (even with chips and chicken pop corn in their stomach...). Thankfully, the guy from the garage was very nice and looked at my car straight away.
The kids got very excited when they realised there was a damaged racing car in the workshop, and they got even more excited when the mechanic told them the door was opened and they could go inside to check it out. By the time I had taken pictures of the car and the kids behind the steering wheel, my tyre was repaired.
It was only 10 euros, but unfortunately (again!) they weren't taking debit cards. "No problem, just drive down the road, there's an ATM near the pub", said the mechanic. "Are you sure? Do you trust me?!" I replied. Do you want to bet what his reply was? "Yeah, it's grand!". Of course it was, for one second I must have forgotten I was in Ireland...
I went to take money , the kids thanked the man for letting them try the racing car and of course I was told to come back whenever I needed new tyres, and that I would get a good price...
And if you want to know, I managed to get the birthday present, and I was only 2 hours late to the party!
I am still in disbelief as how kind people can be, and it's very refreshing especially in the fucked up world we live in. I mean, this man didn't know me, and I know it was only 10 euros, but still, I was amazed at how trusting he was.
Of course, it's also good business for him, because one thing for sure, if I ever need tyres, I know where to go now!!
What about you? Any stories you want to share about random act of kindness?
