Good Samaritans: A Simple Act of Kindness

One of the things I love about Italians is that they are mostly friendly and are always there to help someone in need. I am proud to say that my husband is one of them and truly a good samaritan. There are times when he is driving in our town and would see a senior citizen walking and give them a ride home. Another time, there was one of his dad's friend at the bar who had a little too much to drink and accompanied him home. Then, one time in Siena, there was an awful motorcycle accident and he immediately pulled over and called the ambulance. This may seem like a common and obvious thing to do, but unfortunately, not in America or other parts of the world.

Sadly, the media and possible personal experiences have tainted the public into being cautious and weary of helping someone in need in the fear that it may be a trick. Someone might be crying for help, but in actuality, are luring you in to kidnap you as many chain e-mails have led us to believe. Don't do the heimlich on that person choking because what if you break his ribs and he ends up suing you even though you were trying to save his life. It is sad and it is the corrupt world we have created for ourselves. Why should we second-guess helping someone in need? Helping an old lady with her groceries should be a simple act of kindness rather than a chore or a hope to get a tip. Let alone having her fear you are going to run off with her bags. It is disheartening to see what has become of the world sometimes...

However, it is great to know that I still get to witness good deeds here in our little Italian town. Just yesterday, my husband and I were driving down a road that wasn't as busy and not lit. We saw someone with emergency lights on and another car who was barely sticking out of the bushes and had driven off the path into a ditch that hung off a steep hill. Without even a second thought, my husband pulled over, put on his emergency lights, and got out to see if they needed help. If you are familiar with Americans at all, you will know that the majority if not all cars would just slow down to look with curiosity and then speed off without even considering pulling over. Whether it might be because they are afraid it is a trap or just assume the victims have called for help, the fact is, most would not pull over.

After about 40 minutes, a friend with a tractor had arrived and my husband was able to help them tie their car to a rope connected to the tractor to safely pull it out of the ditch. We then accompanied the tractor back to their home since they had no lights and it would have been dangerous for them to drive back in the dark. In those 40 minutes while we waited for the tractor, I counted 7 cars that passed by and 6 out of those 7 cars stopped and asked if everyone was okay and if they needed help. The one car that didn't stop was a woman so needless to say, she probably assumed she would be of no help and there were already 6 men on the scene.

All in all, it is refreshing to know that all of society isn't corrupted but will it only get worse? Thank you to everyone who has taken the opportunity to help someone in need. Even if it was just picking up a pen someone dropped, a simple act of kindness goes a long way.