This was probably 6 years ago now...
I was driving down Baltimore Avenue in West Philadelphia and there was a gentleman in a white car in front of me. We were at a green light and he paused for whatever reason and then turned his traffic signal on indicating a left turn. Then he switched his signal indicating he had changed his mind to a right turn.
He proceeded to move but instead of actually turning right he turned left. If you're tracking with me and not confused yet, you can probably guess that I was confused and doing my best to interpret which direction he had decided on and how i could best navigate around him.
As he began to turn left, I inched around his vehicle; but as you can probably guess, this guy changed his mind yet again! And with that the nose of his car scraped against the side of mine and there we found ourselves in the midst of what could have been a completely avoidable accident.
there's always that awkward pause before you or the other driver speak where you're not sure what's going to come out of your mouth or theirs. It was awkward.
As we each moved through the intersections, pulled over, and put our flashers on, I could see this interaction taking a few possible directions. To put it bluntly, I was pissed off! And there's always that awkward pause before you or the other driver speak where you're not sure what's going to come out of your mouth or theirs. It was awkward.
We both arrived at the side of my car at the same time. Silent. Just staring blankly at my car. In full transparency, it wasn't that bad. Little dent, little paint scratch. But I was pissed. I work hard, pay alot of money for my car...blah blah blah.
I don't know when or how the shift took place but within a few moments, I thought to myself. "I don't want to be pissed. It sucks to be pissed off! Life is short. Being angry feels bad to me and it's most definitely gonna feel bad to this guy if i lean into him. It's gonna cost time with both of us calling our insurance companies...it's a hassle."
My brain just reoriented to what was more important in life. And this was not it.
And at that moment, i looked at the car, i looked at him, he looked at the car, and then looked back at me. And then WE HUGGED!
In the middle Baltimore Avenue!
I opened my arms wide, he accepted, and then...we hugged!
Trust me when i say neither of us expected our day or this particular moment to go as it did. I think we were both surprised and caught off guard by our response!...especially the fact that it happened without a word. But it's a moment I won't forget anytime soon.
Kirsten Knob
Philadelphia, PA