This trip takes the credit of most unplanned trip we have done so far. We belong to the class who usually book their tickets and plan the hourly daily schedule of the trip at least a month ahead. But this trip was planned just two days before we left. For the Friday morning travel we prepared a cheat sheet of attractions on Wednesday, booked hotel on Thursday and packed bags on Friday morning. Can you beat that?
Our plan was to leave home at 9am so we can reach the destination before dusk but we being the punctual family started our sojourn to Pitts around 11am 🙂 Our first halt was at Pennsylvania welcome center where I gathered few brochure’s of interesting places that led to the horrible experience of the trip :(.. Next halt was at a Service area mall where we gobbled up home packed food and strolled around the mall for a while (stretching and all that after long drive..). After few more hours of drive I noticed through the brochure’s that there is a Gravity Hill (GH) on our way and M suggested that we visit that place as the day was still bright and we didn’t have any plans after reaching Pitts. We also thought this would be the best way to show Adi about how gravity works.
The exit was taken to go to GH and only after driving around 20 miles and couple of calls to visitor center we realized that we were driving in opposite direction 😦 Took a U-turn and reached GH after half-hour drive. By this time it was dark blame it on the winter season as the darkness spreads around even before 5pm. It was pitch dark and no car/people in the vicinity. After all this what did we witness at GH? N.O.T.H.I.N.G. We tried placing car in neutral, pouring out some water but nothing happened 😦 With much disappointment we left the place quicker just to find that we were running out of gas. It was dropping down so quick may be because of all the uphill drive.. 😦 M soon declared that car will not move an inch beyond 4 or 5 miles.. All at a place where there is hardly a house for every 2 miles and that too didn’t have signs of people inside.
We were paranoid is the least to say. We continued to drive few miles and noticed 2 to 3 houses at a place with beautiful Christmas lighting decorations. We decided to stop and M knocked on two of the houses but there was no response. Then, we heard dog barking in next house and saw a man approaching us Or should I say God approaching us. He said “Oh man you guys ran out of gas at a wrong place. There is no gas station for next 20 miles and I don’t have any fuel to spare either” 😦 As M was talking to him another man returned to his nearby home and he also said the same. As they were talking more and discussing about the options the man who spoke to us first said he has an old truck and will check if that has any fuel in the tank. He said “Its just your luck guys. If I have fuel in that old unused truck I can probably help you”.. Luckily he had and helped us to transfer the fuel to our car. And he said this fuel should be good enough to reach the next fuel station.. We thanked him enough and when M took out his purse to pay for the fuel all the man God said was “Help someone else.. Merry Christmas and a happy new year”. My eyes were welled up with his kindness. I couldn’t thank him enough.. Its only because of people like him the world is still surviving. I wish I can invite him to my home for a meal. I wish I can gift him with the precious thing in this world. I wish I can be friends with him and his family forever and ever. I wish I wish I wish… But all he asked me to do is “help the needy”.. I will definitely do it sooner or later.
This incident reminded me of this video doing its rounds in FB recently.. Soul touching isn’t it? How nice will it be if the world operates this way.. Now its my turn to pass on the helping hand…
The adventure didn’t end yet… To be continued…
* – puraanam refers to tale or story. Thanks to SnS as she quoted this word in last post’s comment.
Between my littles and me 