You don't owe me anything.

You know, he almost didn't see the old lady, stranded
on the side of the road.  But even in the dim light of
day, he could see she needed help.  So he pulled up in
front of her Mercedes and got out.  His Pontiac was
still sputtering when he approached her.
Even with the smile on his face, she was worried.  No
one had stopped to help for the last hour or so.  Was he
going to hurt her? He didn't look safe, he looked poor
and hungry.
He could see that she was frightened, standing out there
in the cold.  He knew how she felt.  It was that chill
which only fear can put in you.  He said, "I'm here to
help you ma'am. Why don't you wait in the car where it's
warm?  By the way, my name is Bryan."  Well, all she had
was a flat tire, but for an old lady, that was bad
enough.  Bryan crawled under the car looking for a place
to put the jack, skinning his knuckles a time or two.
Soon he was able to change the tire. But he had to get
dirty and his hands hurt.  As he was tightening up the
lug nuts, she rolled down the window and began to talk
to him. She told him that she was from St.  Louis and
was only just passing through. She couldn't thank him
enough for coming to her aid.  Bryan just smiled as he
closed her trunk. She asked him how much she owed him.
Any amount would have been all right with her.  She had
already imagined all the awful things that could have
happened had he not stopped.

Bryan never thought twice about the money.  This was not
a job to him.  This was helping someone in need, and God
knows there were plenty who had given him a hand in the
past...He had lived his whole life that way, and it
never occurred to him to act any other way. He told her
that if she really wanted to pay him back, the next time
she saw someone who needed help, she could give that
person the assistance that they needed, and Bryan
added... and think of me".

He waited until she started her car and drove off.  It
had been a cold and depressing day, but he felt good as
he headed for home, disappearing into the twilight.

A few miles down the road the lady saw a small cafe.
She went in to grab a bite to eat, and take the chill
off before she made the last leg of her trip home.  It
was a dingy looking restaurant.  Outside were two old
gas pumps.  The whole scene was unfamiliar to her. The
cash register was like the telephone of an out of work
actor-it didn't ring much.  Her waitress came over and
brought a clean towel to wipe her wet hair.  She had a
sweet smile, one that even being on her feet for the
whole day couldn't erase.The lady noticed that the
waitress was nearly eight months pregnant, but she
never let the strain and aches change her attitude. The
old lady wondered how someone who had so little could be
so giving to a stranger.  Then she remembered Bryan.

After the lady finished her meal, and the waitress went
to get change for her hundred dollar bill, the lady
slipped right out the door. She was gone by the time the
waitress came back.  She wondered where the lady could
be, then she noticed something written on the napkin
under which was 4 $100 bills.

There were tears in her eyes when she read what the lady
wrote.  It said: "You don't owe me anything, I have been
there too.  Somebody once helped me out, the way I'm
helping you. If you really want to pay me back, here is
what you do: Do not let this chain of love end with you."

Well, there were tables to clear, sugar bowls to fill,
and people to serve, but the waitress made it through
another day.  That night when she got home from work and
climbed into bed, she was thinking about the money and
what the lady had written.  How could the lady have
known how much she and her husband needed it?  With the
baby due next month, it was going to be hard. She knew
how worried her husband was, and as he lay sleeping next
to her, she gave him a soft kiss and whispered soft and
low, "Everything's gonna be all right; I love you,
Bryan."

Today, I send you this story, now I am asking you to
please pass this on to a friend.  When we learn to give
of ourselves it does come back to us abundantly!