Tools

I almost forgot about this story, and that's when I have to write stuff down, so my kids can read about it after I lose my mind!
One thing I love about my husband is the fact that he has a good heart for others. I prayed I would marry someone who would be ok with helping others that were less fortunate than us. Even though sometimes we may be the 'unfortunate' ones in some perspectives, we are still blessed beyond measure.
A couple years ago, CJ discussed selling his drill set for a better, longer-lasting but more expensive set. This doesn't seem like a big deal, but it kind of is. You see, these aren't just a collection of garage tools that men keep to break out a couple times a year when they feel like doing guy stuff. These tools literally help feed our family. They get used. Every day. And they get beat up, but they are so necessary. And it's high on the totem pole compared to the heater that was busted in his work van (this was dead winter), that he said could wait. Buying new replacements on tools, however, is unavoidable when you own your own business. He was planning on getting about $300 to pawn or sell his old ones, to put towards a new set.
He started by doing a craigslist search to see if anyone was in the market, or how much other sets were going for to get an idea for his posting. But instead, he found something else. He found an ad, written by a wife. A wife who's husband didn't know she was writing it. She said they had come on some bad luck on top of losing almost everything in a fire. And they didn't have insurance. Her husband worked by doing handyman services. She said he lost all his tools. She said he was a hard worker who would never ask for anything, but she wanted to help him. And if anyone had any extra tools that they were just going to throw out, she wanted to come get them and surprise him with whatever she could collect.
Now, when CJ read this, he showed me. When I read it, I put myself right in that wife's shoes. Maybe they had babies to feed? My baby was only a few months old. If this were my husband, I would do whatever I could to help him. Of course I didn't go pouring on CJ that he should give away his old set of POWER tools to someone we know not much about. After all, they could be selling them for drugs? But you know what, that's not my problem. We should do things (within common sense of course) because we have faith that it's the right thing to do. What happens after that is on them.
Well you know where this is going. CJ contacted the wife, who was in tears when she heard what he wanted to give her. They came by, and yeah, they were interesting:) He had spent time in prison, met his wife when he got out, and he said 'she saved him'. Said he's had a hard time getting a second chance at life in general after prison (people won't hire him etc), but he was doing the best he could. They were so humbled and grateful. And that alone was worth any amount of cash CJ could have got for the set. But it didn't stop there.
CJ and the man talked for over an hour about everything. Turns out this man learned a lot in prison:) How to fix things etc. CJ told him about his broken heater. CJ had already had a mechanic look at it and give him an outrageous quote, so CJ didn't have it fixed. This man and CJ disappeared in the garage for awhile. And I'd be lying if I didn't have a few uncomfortable feelings creep up. After all, over the last hour we learned this guy did some serious time in prison. What if he's taking CJ in the garage to blindside him with a crowbar to the skull and then steal all of our..well..all of our what?? We don't have anything worth stealing haha! Pretty soon CJ came busting through the door and the first words out of his mouth were 'that son of a bitch..' so I was sure the guy took off with something. No, CJ said 'that son of a bitch just fixed my heater! Runs better than ever!' He was so excited.
Will never forget that night. Well, actually, I almost did. So that's why I wrote it down:) Sometimes we may have that opportunity to help someone but we talk ourselves out of it for a million reasons instead of having faith that if we pay it forward, we will be taken care of. Or that someday some stranger may help me or my children if they ever needed it.