A stranger - Thanks For Your Kind Gesture

Anyone who has ever done any long-distance traveling knows the value that kindness from strangers can have, and my experience in traveling proves no different.  Unfortunately, I didn’t have the opportunity to get-to-know the kind stranger who helped me out during my travels; however she is a person I will never forget…

During the month of July, 2004 I took a road trip from Minnesota to Alaska with a group of close friends.  Our intention was to stay in Alaska for a period of three weeks while enjoying some time fishing, sightseeing, and generally just relaxing in a state that none of us were familiar with.  We drove the 3,000+ miles with no problems, stayed in our small cabin without any setbacks, and had a fun time during the majority of our vacation.  That all could have been ruined, however, through a simple act of forgetfulness during one late night in the Alaskan frontier.

I had made a trip to the laundromat one evening to wash all of the clothes I had brought with for my three weeks in Alaska.  I’m not sure if I was extremely tired of just plain careless, but in the process of finishing-up my laundry I left an entire bag of fishing gear laying in the parking lot of the laundromat.  After realizing my mistake (and gasping at the possible hundreds of dollars in merchandise I had left carelessly laying in a parking lot) I quickly returned to the laundromat only to find a closed store and emply parking lot greeting me.  I trudged back to my cabin, depressed at the reality of losing my fishing gear.

I woke up the next day to the ringing telephone and was greeted by a friendly female voice announcing her position as the owner of the laundromat.  Apparently she not only had picked up my bag of belongings, but had also dry-cleaned the majority of the contents for me.  A phone number inside one of my pants pockets had alerted her to the owner of the bag and she had taken care of the rest on her own.

A kind gesture by a stranger, a peaceful conclusion to a stressful situation, and a satisfying experience in a strange land...all brought out by good people.