A Remarkable Lesson: Will You Be Ready Or Helpless?

I have a true story to tell.

Last weekend, I traveled to a town in northern Washington for my granddaughter’s 3rd birthday. It was a wonderful time with family; childhood is precious and fleeting, so we must embrace it.

But that is not the story; the story comes from my journey home.

Now, I drive an older vehicle; she is mine, and I’ve paid for her. As she ages, she needs a bit of extra love, so it is not unusual for her to need a bit of help. On my way home to the Portland area, the temperature gauge started running a little high, so I started paying attention, decided to find an exit, and see what she needed. I passed several exits as I watched the temp rise and fall, thinking it might be a non-issue since it hadn’t gotten too high.

After about 45 minutes, I made the call and took an exit. This exit was nothing to speak of: two gas stations; one looked closed. I can’t tell you why, but I went to the one that looked closed; I know it doesn’t make sense. As I pulled in, all the pumps were fenced off. I thought that was OK; I don’t need gas.

It turns out the market was open, and another car sat at the far end of the parking strip, about 25 yards away. Their hood was up, with a gallon of water sitting on the fan shroud; they’d stopped here for the same reason. I thought, a gallon of water is a great idea, far cheaper than they would charge me for coolant out here in the middle of nowhere.

So I went into the market, used the restroom, and bought a gallon of water. When I opened my rig’s hood to check the coolant level, it looked fine, so I checked the cap. It felt loose, so I gave it a spin. It popped off, and a volcano of coolant erupted. The cap ended up somewhere in the engine compartment because I let go immediately to avoid getting burned.

Good news: no burns. Bad news: I definitely need the water now, and I need to find the cap. After the coolant settled, I filled the reservoir with water. As the last drops of water left my jug, I heard How’s it going? When I looked up, a young man with a half-full jug of water said, “I saw what happened and thought you might need this,” and handed it to me. I responded, ” Yeah, I think I opened the cap a bit prematurely”, even though it was unintentional. I thanked him and asked him what he was having trouble with.

He told me he had just done an engine swap and had lost his serpentine belt on his way to church. I remarked, ” Wow, do you think you will find one at either of these stations?” He told me he didn’t need one, as his was still OK; he just didn’t have the tools to get it back on. I told him I had tools in my rig; let me button this up, and I’ll grab them, and we’ll get it done.

When I approached his vehicle, he had already jacked it up on the passenger side and removed the wheel. I asked him why; he said it was so he could access the belt and pulleys more easily. How can I help?. This young man seemed to know what he was doing. So I set up my tools and asked him what he needed. He slipped under the vehicle; it was a small passenger car.

I stepped over to the vehicle and looked down into the engine compartment to see him and what we were working on. We started talking about the belt routing; I was looking him in the eyes when the car slid off the jack! His shocked look, and I can only assume mine, set me in motion. I stepped to the side, straddled him, grabbed the wheel well, and pulled with all my might while screaming Get out, get out of there. He slid out with some difficulty.

He sat up immediately, hand on his head, and asked, “Is it bleeding?” Should we call 911? What happened? I told him, ” It’s going to be OK. I am a trained EMT. My kit is in my rig. I can help you. He responded, Please help me!

I won’t bore you with the details; they are private anyway, but he is OK. I asked if there was someone he could call; he replied My mom but I left my phone at my friend’s house. So we used my phone to try, but she wouldn’t answer. Can I give you a lift to church, where his mom is? He agreed.

I told him we were done working on his car. I jacked it back up, put his wheel back on, and put everything away so we could lock up his vehicle. We cleaned him up a bit from all the blood; heads bleed like water balloons. We didn’t need Mom to freak out more than necessary.

I went into the church with him to tell his mom what had happened and what she needed to do next. She was very grateful that I was there to help her son; we prayed and sang a hymn.

Why did I choose that exit to pull off the freeway? Would it have turned out differently if I hadn’t? Will we ever know the answers? Maybe you already have some thoughts.

The moral of this story is: We don’t get to choose when or where we will be needed.

As Always, Stay Vigilant and Be Prepared

You play a critical role in your preparedness. By preparing yourself for the unexpected, you will become more self-reliant and a valuable asset to your community