Thanks in Reverse

I was running errands on this cold morning when I pulled up to a four-way stop. I noticed some fleeting commotion coming from the car to my left, but I couldn't make out what it was. I turned to my right and a found myself a few seconds later stopped behind that car at a red light at the intersection of Dixon and Alto roads on Kokomo's west side.

I was engrossed in changing the radio station when suddenly, the driver's door on the car in front of me flew open and out jumped a woman clad in grey sweats. The commotion had returned, and it was the same car! I was on full alert as the woman darted toward the back of her car, and I thought, "This must be a Chinese fire drill, and the person on the passenger's side must be having a slow day." But she kept coming toward me.

It hadn't dawned on me yet that this woman was Holly Foster, a former student of mine and fellow member at Bible Baptist Church. As it turned out, I was the one having the slow day. Holly was trying to give me more gas cards on behalf of the Genesis class at our church.

But at the moment, all I knew was that someone was coming after me.

And here's the bizarre part: I slammed my gear shift into reverse at some point between the time Holly passed the back of her car and when I finally recognized her. To make matters worse, Holly must have seen me prepare for evasive action because the gear shift is mounted in plain view on the steering column.

So, thanks to BBC and to Holly, in particular, for making this one of the most memorable gas card deliveries ever on the west side of Kokomo!