Somedays are just a heckuva a lot better than others! We had to make a mail run for prescriptions into town, 13.2 miles away due to the snow fall, a slight diversion...normally only 12.5 miles! In town, the mailbox lady said there was a 73 year old woman that was stranded there in town, and needed to get feed to her 10 horses, about 2 miles from our place. As we were getting the alfalfa loaded into the Bronco, we came across another poor soul that was stuck, as they had slid off the icy road into a hidden ditch... Lo and behold, it was another Bronco! (almost identical, a 1995, ours is a 1998) But, he had regular tires on it for street/highway use, and was not at all lifted. In comparison, our's is almost 13 inches higher than his.... Luckily, a couple weeks ago, I'd thrown in a heavy tow chain..... Got him out, got those horses their feed, and my caretaker promised to come out every couple days to check on her and haul whatever she would need, and gave her his cell number. (We have already been asked to set up radio communications for several of the locals so they can call for help when and if needed....) Then heading back, we found a guy along the road that had already walked some 3 miles in the 2-3ft+ snow drifts, as his van was buried up to the doors along the main road, and thawed him out ( I put in a new heater core 2 months ago!) and got him home , a bit frazzled, and wet, but no frostbite and warm and alive and well. Then we got a call from a neighbor, 5 miles away that another guy had walked to his place and needed water....but had no vehicle to haul it or to go into town and get any.... We had an extra 55 gallons we took over until the weather and roads clear up a bit more.... Seems a good choice was made when I decidecd to buy that poor run down, torn up, and mistreated Bronco.....Despite the nearly $4,000.00 that was paid in repairs! It is only one of 3 vehicles in the area ( of over 200 people in that area) that can actually make it through the snow, and do it easily.... BUT there was one thing we did determine right away, the rear end is too light in the snow, so we will be adding 4 bags of 80-90 lbs of play sand to get better traction. So, we have made a lot of people happy, and that's always a good thing! I feel better now, knowing some good is being done and that now a lot of people that were "concerned" about who and what we were in the begining, have come to the conclusion we are just like them and trying to help in anyway we can! Gives ya a warm fuzzy feeling after all! My guy has gone out of his way to get people to their doctors in Williams, Az., 35 miles on way, and in Prescott, Az., 50 miles away. There are some nice people out there and we have been accepted now, as we do whatever we can, to help them out. However,.....No good deed goes unpunished.... About 14 people, some that were strangers to each other, all got together and had a helluva pot-luck dinner ! My caretaker guy is doing good things! We now know more people and have made some great contacts up there.... Now we have a "reputation" to live up to as well! Ahhh,... such is life!
Congratulations on the wonderful modern day Christmas story. Making new friends, volunteer community service, quite possibly saving lives in the freezing cold, a potluck, ..... heck, I am almost jealous...LOL. Thanks for sharing the tale. And may you and yours have a blessed Christmas also!!!
Dragonfly, than you for sharing that and bless you! It seems these types stories strike home for a lot of us.
