It was a Friday night when I set out from Canberra for Sydney for the weekend. It is now 34 years later and I still remember how it felt to break down on the Berrima bends. I sat in the car for ages and then finally decided to get out and flag down help. The first couple of attempts failed and then to my surprise someone stopped. It was a young farmer and his family on their way to a wedding. They left me with sandwiches, went into Berrima informed the Police, and then got the NRMA to come out from Mittagong. The Police officer came and parked behind me with his lights on and informed me of the 12 fatalities on that stretch in the previous year. Eventually the NRMA arrived, he got the car going and then spent a couple of hours welding up the muffler that had been damaged due to poor timing. The young family, when they reached Sydney, called Mum to let her know I would be late and then called a few days later to see that all was well. This was the start of a friendship where I drop in at the farm when I drive past. In recent years this has been less frequent. In June as I drove back from a family funeral in Canberra I dropped in again. It was probably 5 years since my last visit. We picked up as if we saw each other regularly. It was different this time, the years were catching up and my Good Samaritan farmer is living with cancer and the effects of treatment. He was in good spirits, making sure he put up a good fight. We reconnected with current phone numbers and I left assuring them of my prayers. Last night I checked my SMS messages and there was just one message informing me that the battle with cancer ended peacefully on Friday night. I am pleased that his fight is over and appreciative of the timing of my last visit to catch up and say goodbye. I am also thankful that on Thursday I can attend his funeral and remember a man who to me was a modern day Good Samaritan. May he rest in peace.
Posted on: Tue, 26 Aug 2014 10:57:55 +0000
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