Author Deedra Ankrom

Years ago we were hit by the tail end of Hurricane Ike. It did a heck of a lot of damage in our area and almost no one got through it unscathed. Naturally, all power was ‘out’ all over the place with countless refrigerators full of food just going to waste.

As a result of the storm, just about everyone was rushing to any fast food restaurant that was open. As I sat in my car waiting in line at a drive-thru, I noticed that the dirty, banged up car in line behind me sounded like it was on its last legs. I also noticed that every time the line-up stopped for a bit, the driver of that car shut off the engine… this got me to thinking that he was probably low on gas and maybe even low on funds to fill the tank.

I had thought about all of this during the long wait to reach the window so, when I finally arrived there I paid for my bill and took my food. Then, not being quite ‘flush’ myself, I asked the cashier how much the bill was going to be for the people in the car right behind me. She looked at me in a funny sort of way, then after checking, she told me that it was for $12 plus some change… an amount low enough that I knew I could swing it without a problem. So I paid their bill for them. The cashier, flashed me a broad smile and thanked me on their behalf.