Rider in the rain

As my family was traveling to Virginia this July, we drove through a rough storm. While the speed limit in West Virginia was 70 mph, we were lucky to go 35 with minimal visibility, darkness, and heavy water causing hydroplaning. As I’m driving, I see a motorcyclist pulled over on the side of the road. If you have ever ridden a motorcycle in the rain, you’ll know that they feel like bee bees hitting you (not fun). On this night, the rain must have felt like baseball balls hitting you. There was no shelters, no overpasses. Luckily, a car was also pulled over giving shelter to the rider.

My first thought was the rider must find shelter. My second thought was if I was alone then I would pull over. On this occasion, I had my infant son asleep in back and my wife. My third thought was the gratitude that God sent someone else to be the rider’s shelter; I didn’t have to make the decision.

I remember growing up in the 1980s where my father would pick up hitchhikers. With a wife in front and 2 kids in back, the kids would scoot over for someone we definitely didn’t know. It might only be 10 miles to Florence and the person would take the ride. He/She would be closer to their destination.

I remember my cousin hitchhiking to Michigan around 1990. A fight with his parents, anger, a thumb, and kind people got him to Michigan within 8 hours. Within a few hours of getting to Michigan, he realized it was a bad decision and his brother drove 5 hours each way to retrieve him.

It is 25 years later and we hear the world is different. You know the stories about car jacking and worse. It puts hesitation to helping your fellow person, following that Christian way. My dad doesn’t pick up hitchhikers anymore. My cousin who had a hitchhiking adventure doesn’t pick up hitchhikers.

I’m proud that my first impression was to help. I’m unsure of what I would do if the rider was stranded with no shelter. I pray that I would have provided shelter.