Missed opportunity

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puzzledtoo

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So. This evening I was driving home. It was dark and there was quite a bit of traffic on this route as usual. As usual most folks were going at least a little faster than the posted speed limit.
I spotted a person(one)pushing a car on the shoulder of the road(very wide shoulder) with the car’s hazard lights flashing. I thought briefly “I should help”. I Kept driving. I thought “What can I do? How can I help?” I thought to myself “Blessings” to this person pushing the car and whoever might be steering it.
I immediately recalled the parable of the good Samaritan. Then I thought of getting home to the warm house, my wife, and having an evening snack. As I recalled the good Samaritan parable I felt a slight tightening in the chest and butterflies in the stomach. I kept driving hoping all worked out well for them. I wish I had stopped to offer help but I didn’t.
I acted just like the priest and the levite in the parable. I passed on by. I do good things all the time. I help people all the time. Some I know some I don’t. This evening I failed miserably. The thought that comes to mind is “That which you did to the least of my brethren…”
When I do good for others it feels good. But all the good I’ve felt all the times I’ve helped others seems pale compared to this feeling I have right now for not stopping and helping.
In a few days or weeks this feeling of guilt will fade. I hope that it doesn’t fade so much that the next time I have an opportunity to help in a situation which is out of my comfort zone I won’t accept the challenge.
 
puzzledtoo said:
So. This evening I was driving home. It was dark and there was quite a bit of traffic on this route as usual. As usual most folks were going at least a little faster than the posted speed limit.
I spotted a person(one)pushing a car on the shoulder of the road(very wide shoulder) with the car’s hazard lights flashing. I thought briefly “I should help”. I Kept driving. I thought “What can I do? How can I help?” I thought to myself “Blessings” to this person pushing the car and whoever might be steering it.
I immediately recalled the parable of the good Samaritan. Then I thought of getting home to the warm house, my wife, and having an evening snack. As I recalled the good Samaritan parable I felt a slight tightening in the chest and butterflies in the stomach. I kept driving hoping all worked out well for them. I wish I had stopped to offer help but I didn’t.
I acted just like the priest and the levite in the parable. I passed on by. I do good things all the time. I help people all the time. Some I know some I don’t. This evening I failed miserably. The thought that comes to mind is “That which you did to the least of my brethren…”
When I do good for others it feels good. But all the good I’ve felt all the times I’ve helped others seems pale compared to this feeling I have right now for not stopping and helping.
In a few days or weeks this feeling of guilt will fade. I hope that it doesn’t fade so much that the next time I have an opportunity to help in a situation which is out of my comfort zone I won’t accept the challenge.
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And now don’t beat yourself up. We are always learning things. We can ask the Holy Spirit when we should be there for others and He will give us help.
 
Yes I did think of awareness. That now I’m more aware of things that I might not have been many years ago and I attribute this to my practice over the last 5-10 years.
I’ll try not to beat myself up too much yet we are our hardest critics most of the time. Thank you both for you words of encouragement and insight. Blessings to both. Take care and stay safe.
 
puzzledtoo said:
Yes I did think of awareness. That now I’m more aware of things that I might not have been many years ago and I attribute this to my practice over the last 5-10 years.
I’ll try not to beat myself up too much yet we are our hardest critics most of the time. Thank you both for you words of encouragement and insight. Blessings to both. Take care and stay safe.
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If you think someone needs help, call the authorities-the police or state patrol. That’s why they’re there. If someone on the side of the road needs immediate help and no one else is around, that might be an occasion to stop and help, but even in that situation, calling for the proper authorities is the most sensible thing to do. You don’t know what kind of situation you might be getting into. Even the police take precautions, and they’re trained and armed. There’s nothing wrong with being prudent when such things happen. 🙂
 
“If you think someone…” Unfortunately calling the authorities never occurred to me. So much for having a cell phone. Thank you.
 
puzzledtoo said:
So. This evening I was driving home. It was dark and there was quite a bit of traffic on this route as usual. As usual most folks were going at least a little faster than the posted speed limit.
I spotted a person(one)pushing a car on the shoulder of the road(very wide shoulder) with the car’s hazard lights flashing. I thought briefly “I should help”. I Kept driving. I thought “What can I do? How can I help?” I thought to myself “Blessings” to this person pushing the car and whoever might be steering it.
I immediately recalled the parable of the good Samaritan. Then I thought of getting home to the warm house, my wife, and having an evening snack. As I recalled the good Samaritan parable I felt a slight tightening in the chest and butterflies in the stomach. I kept driving hoping all worked out well for them. I wish I had stopped to offer help but I didn’t.
I acted just like the priest and the levite in the parable. I passed on by. I do good things all the time. I help people all the time. Some I know some I don’t. This evening I failed miserably. The thought that comes to mind is “That which you did to the least of my brethren…”
When I do good for others it feels good. But all the good I’ve felt all the times I’ve helped others seems pale compared to this feeling I have right now for not stopping and helping.
In a few days or weeks this feeling of guilt will fade. I hope that it doesn’t fade so much that the next time I have an opportunity to help in a situation which is out of my comfort zone I won’t accept the challenge.
Click to expand...
This only proves that you are a very good person and close to God … God Bless You
 
puzzledtoo said:
“If you think someone…” Unfortunately calling the authorities never occurred to me. So much for having a cell phone. Thank you.
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Well, since most people carry some kind of cellphone, they probably called for help themselves. 🙂

It’s good to want to help, of course, but we don’t need to put ourselves in unnecessary danger to do it.
 
Thank you Katherine438: If only we could see ourselves as the divine does-so much less stress and suffering.
Thank you for sharing Della: Hopefully someone thought to call for help and acted on the thought. I suppose fear may have been in the back of my mind keeping me from stopping and helping. Healthy fear is beneficial but not sure that ( danger) even came across my mind.
 
puzzledtoo said:
Thank you Katherine438: If only we could see ourselves as the divine does-so much less stress and suffering.
Thank you for sharing Della: Hopefully someone thought to call for help and acted on the thought. I suppose fear may have been in the back of my mind keeping me from stopping and helping. Healthy fear is beneficial but not sure that ( danger) even came across my mind.
Click to expand...
We all have a reluctance to get involved, and fear doesn’t always manifest itself in our conscious mind, does it? It’s instinctual rather than an act of the will/or arises to conscious thought. Sometimes we have to overcome our instinctual fear, such as a soldier going into battle or rescuing someone in immediate danger. But usually fear is a good thing because it can keep us from doing things that might harm us. Our “spidey senses” kick in. 🙂 A person alone on a busy highway at night trying to stop to help people who could be helped by authorities is one of those situations in which caution is warranted. So, don’t beat yourself up over it is all I want to say.
 
Not beating myself up(other than that evening of the event). Mostly feeling comfortable due to the insightful posts from you and the others. Everyone has been quite helpful so I’m really glad I started the thread. Otherwise I probably would still be disappointed in how I had acted or not acted.
Reading the posts and meditating on what I’ve read has been good for helping me find some balance and clarity. Thank you to all.
 
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