Send Me On My Way

I’d had it all planned out – I was going to be so smooth, surprising Mama Betsy. Every Thursday, Mama Betsy waits for all of us to get out of class and meet her at the UC for a 10:15 breakfast. Every Thursday, though, we always take forever to get there, and she is usually done before we get there. Today, on the other hand, was going to be different. I was going to be at the UC right at ten, so she and I could have breakfast together. There was really no reason for me to wait until 10:15 every week, and it would be a nice surprise for her. I got my ID, plugged in my iPod and listened to Rusted Root’s “Send me on my way” as I went.. on my way.
Halfway down the road, I half-noticed a man on a bike trudging up the road with his toddler son strapped in a backseat. He seemed to be doing an all right job.. that is, until the bike toppled sideways, causing the man to slam into the asphalt with a loud thud. It was a rather peculiar fall, as the man didn’t try to break his fall at all. In fact, he didn’t seem to notice the bike was off balance until he was up-close-and-personal with the ground. I was about thirty feet away, and by the time I got there, he was standing up and tending to his son, who was crying very loudly. They both looked just fine, but I figured it wouldn’t hurt to ask if he was okay, so I did. He didn’t look at me and instead cared for his son. I got the feeling that I was embarrassing him. It was understandable; he had fallen very goofily. I almost left him there, but I decided I could at least wait for an answer, even a shamed one. I asked him again, and he just looked at me and hesitated, breathing heavily. I asked if I should go get help – I thought I was prompting him to say no and send me on my way; the baby was fine now and he looked like he was all right. However, he started breathing more heavily and replied, “Actually, yeah, could you get someone?” I immediately went to the UC and they called emergency services to help the guy. I went back to talk to him before they arrived. His name was Scott, and he just had a bit of trouble breathing after the fall. He was thoroughly embarrassed once a police car, a fire engine, and an ambulance showed up. It looked like my role was over, so I said bye, and he thanked me “for stopping.” I went on my way, at this point way too late to surprise Mama Betsy, and the lady at the UC counter thanked me as I walked by, “for stopping.” It made me happy and sad at the same time. I felt happy because I felt like a good person. I had done an honest to goodness good deed. It made me sad, though, because it meant that asking someone if s/he is all right after a nasty spill on the asphalt passes for a good deed.
When I finally walked into the dining area, Mama Betsy was nowhere to be found. She showed up late, after I had eaten breakfast alone. It makes me feel like it was fate – like helping that man was the real reason I was “Sen[t] … on my way.”