Oh my God what a terrible day I was having... Traffic, the summer heat, an empty stomach, and to top it off I locked my keys in the car! On my way out of the car and into Petsmart to get some dog food I some how, in the shuffle of grabbing my wallet and phone, managed to forget to grab my keys. However as fortune may have it, this was the perfect day in fact to lose my keys because Diane, Petsmart employee extraordinaire, just happened to be working!
Having nearly given up on my sad attempts to grab my keys with a wire hanger, I asked the cashier who then consulted Diane to see if she had the number to the Sheriff's Office to get a deputy out to break my car open. Well, apparently they don't do that... I was in between a rock and a hard place: My wire hangar method was not working, I had no spare key in my nearby apartment, no AAA, and there seemed to be no one that was able to get into my car without being paid $100.00+.
So, I sadly and quietly walked back to my car to repeat what I had already been doing for nearly 30 minutes. That's when Diane in her infinite kindness decided to give me, some random guy, 5 minutes of her time to help me in any way she could. Immediately I thought that there was no way this kind woman could help me, as much as I appreciated her wanting to help. To be honest, I was so ashamed and embarrassed that I had almost let my sour attitude get the best of me. Luckily I swallowed my pride and with Diane's help and with just one try we managed to get my keys out of the bag they were in!
It should be no surprise that I gave this good Samaritan the same hug I would give my own mother as Diane was in that moment, the most important person I had ever had the privilege to meet. With tears in my eyes, and a deep breath, I thanked her for saving my afternoon, and quite possibly my sanity.
Once she parted, I got into my car and virtually broke down in tears. The stress and anxiety of losing something so important can be unimaginable. However it wasn't the stress of losing my keys that made me cry, it was how people like Diane still exist. The good Samaritans. The selfless people that you can lean and depend on. Complete strangers who even after barely knowing you for 5 minutes are ready to devote their time to help you in any way they can.
Petsmart, you guys have a super-employee in your midst. If she treats animals and our beloved pets with half the amount of patience and selflessness she showed me today then the citizens of Rancho Cucamonga AND their best friends are in good hands.
Thank you Diane and do not ever stop being you!
-Mike read more