Snow Angel

Sometimes, angels are sent to help us and we just have to trust them even though technically we shouldn't.

The past two days have been snow days in my world.  As I've posted prior to this, we've really gotten slammed.  And while I can deal with shoveling and train delays and everything they entail, there's one aspect of my person snow experience that gets me every time.

My walk to work.

I have almost a half mile to walk from the train to the office.  No big deal, normally I can walk this in less than 10 minutes when I factor in waiting at traffic lights.  It was a bit of an adjustment when we moved from Center City to the 'burbs, since now we're right in the middle of a very busy thoroughfare and trucks and buses go whipping by us at extreme speed while we cower at the edge of a narrow sidewalk - just wide enough for two people to walk side-by-side. 

Factor in heavy snow and the fact that the plows dump all that snow onto the very narrow sidewalk and you have a recipe for possible disaster.

At first it was super treacherous (and exhausting), with all of us train riders climbing the snow piles in single-file.  One misstep and you're out in the middle of the road.  But we never had an accident, thank goodness.  And since then the business owners have been much better about shoveling, so it's not as bad as it was a couple of years ago.  Still, every time I have to walk to or from the office after a snowstorm, I say a prayer.

Today was no exception.  As I stood in line to leave the train I said:

Dear God, you always keep me safe.  Please have my guardian angel watch over me today and get me in to work with no accidents.

And then I started on my trek.  Right away I knew I was in trouble - yesterday was a nice, mid-30's and sunny kind of day.  Today = super cold.  Very soon I faced a sidewalk completely covered in ice.  But I had to give it a shot. 

BAM! I went down.  I got up.  I took a step.  BAM! I went down again.

Lucky for me the snow broke my fall both times, so it didn't even hurt.  But I did make me extremely worried because I was maybe 50 feet from the station and had already fallen twice.

I got up, brushed myself off, and heard someone call out to me.  I looked up and saw a man in a minivan who had pulled up into the parking lot that I was approaching.

"I saw you fall, is there anywhere I can drive you?"

And you know what? I told him where I needed to go and he opened the door and cleared off the passenger seat and I got in and we took off.  I couldn't believe what I saw outside the car - people walking in the road just to avoid the sidewalk! And now that I think back, he never closed the window or locked the door - I guess he wanted me to know I was safe with him.  Definitely safer than walking in the road.

Turns out he's familiar with my company because - get this - he has the exact same name as the owner.  Right down the middle initial.  So whenever he introduces himself to someone, they immediately think he's the wrong person (my company's owner is a pretty well-known guy).  His children were also taught by the managing officer's wife.  And he and his own wife have a law office two doors down from my building.  Small world, huh?

It wasn't until after I told Rob about this that he asked, "You got into a stranger's car?".  Well yeah, I did.  And in any other situation it might not have been the best idea.  But this morning I never thought twice, and I'm a pretty skeptical person - I guess having spent so much time working and living in the city made me that way.  But in this case, I never occurred to me.  I just knew he was sent my way because of my prayer. 

I'm glad he has such a familiar name - now I'll remember who to send a Thank You card to.