November is a great month. Not only was International Kindness Day on November 13, but in the States we celebrate Thanksgiving too. No other month reminds us to be both kind and grateful for all we have.
Just When I’m Feeling Road Weary, Kindness Shows Up
I’ll admit it: I’m growing tired of being nomadic. There. I said it. After 18 years I’m ready to put down roots in a place I love, with awesome people as neighbors. And that place is Alaska. Oh, and Colorado. Yeah, we love ’em both. I just can’t decide where I’m going to persuade Jim to point our RV.
While driving on I-25, a “volunteer roadside assistance” bus passed us.
Way back in mid-September, we were enjoying the kind of beautiful fall day that made me want to stay in Fort Collins for good. OK maybe not for an entire winter. Regardless, we were on I-25 when an eye-catching skoolie passed us. It was “Journey of a Spirit’s Mechanic,” probably on the way to help someone stranded, or out of fuel, or trying to fix a flat tire.
“Wow cool!” Jim and I said at the same time. “We need to talk to them for the RV LIFE Podcast!”
I took their photo and meant to reach out. But life got in the way. A pulmonary embolism will do that.
Two months later we hit the road for winter. And two days into our southern migration, we pulled into Lordsburg, New Mexico to get some fuel.
What a shock to see the same bus hundreds of miles away, on International Kindness Day
Maybe the Universe knew I needed them at just the right time. Thankfully, not because of a break down on the road. But because on International Kindness Day, I needed a reminder to remember that generous, fun, and and fascinating people are everywhere, wherever we roll. It just takes stepping out of your comfort zone to get to know them.
The Martian and The Mouse
Jim and I were both intrigued by the bus, and the mission. We had to meet them. So after fueling up, he parked our rig across from them, and we walked over to say hi. That’s when we learned the story of the Martian and the Mouse.
Martian and his lady, Mouse used to live a pretty standard suburban life before they decided to hit the road. They wanted to travel, living a life of servitude to share kindness with people who need it during one of the toughest times any of us will experience, a roadside breakdown.
The skeptics in their lives laughed, but they drove off anyways.
And for the last few years the couple and their two gorgeous Huskies have been roaming the west, volunteering to help stranded motorists keep moving, without asking for anything but payment for the cost of parts. Donations are welcome, of course, but only if someone can give.
Martian can do basic roadside repairs with the tools he carries now, but keeps an Amazon Wish List handy in case anybody out there wants to help him upgrade his tool set. Mouse also sells jewelry and fun treasures.
I talked to them for about a half hour, recording it all for the RV LIFE Podcast. Not sure when that will air, because the wild coincidence of meeting them on International Kindness Day is still churning through my mind. The story is forming.
Meanwhile, as we roll into Thanksgiving week, it’s so reassuring to be reminded that in our upside down society, with all the chaos going on around us, the generous spirit of people like Martian and Mouse are out there, sharing kindness and compassion in a very challenging world.
Have a great Thanksgiving everyone.
You guys meet the most interesting people!