Day of thanks
Day of thanks
From Dave Austin:
In 1990, a close friend was moving from Vancouver back home to Toronto after a break up. I flew out west to make the drive with her back across the top states of the US.
It was late November, Thanksgiving holiday, when in the Dakotas we encountered white out conditions that forced most traffic off the highway. My friend and I were not prepared (clothing-wise) for what were very uncommon weather conditions at the time. We had no choice but to seek out lodging in a small community called Wall.
Not surprisingly, the town had just one motor inn, which was completely full. As we stood in the lobby of the inn contemplating whether or not to drive on or to risk a night in the car. A woman, hearing this, came to us offering coffee. We were more than glad to have an excuse not to go out in the weather, not realizing that this woman was making calls in search of a home that would take us in for the night!
My friend and I were taken in by the sister of this woman, who turned out to be the owner of the inn. We were welcomed like family into a stranger's home.
We each had a hot shower, were given our own room and clean pajamas. When we very gratefully entered the kitchen to thank this kind woman and her son for their hospitality, to our amazement, there was an entire Thanksgiving dinner laid out on the table.
As it turned out, the single mom and her teenage son would both be working on Thanksgiving Day and had planned to have their Thanksgiving dinner a few days early! This did turn out to be a day to give thanks.
The next morning, we woke to find a note in the kitchen telling us to help ourselves to breakfast and to have a safe trip home to Canada! We were both touched by the goodwill and trust of these strangers and will never forget their kindness.
