Last Saturday I finished a weeklong camp in Ocean City, Maryland, and decided to spend the rest of the weekend in one of my favorite places, New York City. I knew the following Monday I had to be at another event in Philadelphia, PA so it was not worth the time to fly back to Birmingham on Saturday only to have one day at home and then fly right back out on Monday. The weekend was great. New York is the city that never sleeps and I was its pupil. I saw four shows in one weekend and, as always is the case in Manhattan, ate some amazing food. I even managed to go to church on Sunday morning. All that said, the weekend was going just as expected until Monday morning.
I guess to explain properly, I’ll have to go back to Saturday afternoon when I arrived in front of my hotel with the rental car. I was asked by the bellman if I wanted to valet park my car, I asked him how much and he answered $43 a day. Then he noticed a car right in front of us pulling out of a parking space. He pointed to it and said that another option would be to just park right there. He told me I was in luck because during the weekend you can park in that spot for free. On weekdays, however, it’s a NO PARKING zone, as long as I moved it by 8:30 Monday morning, all should be good and I’d save myself $90. Obviously, I went with that option!
Now, fast-forward to Monday morning, 7:45. Picture me standing in front of the hotel looking for my rental car, which is nowhere to be found! I asked the bellman (who was not the same guy as on Saturday) what should I do? I told him my car was gone, and I pointed to the empty spot. He agreed and informed me that my car had been towed, that I had parked in a NO PARKING zone. I told him the other bellman had told me that it was OK to park there until 8:30 a.m. He laughed and said the sign says 7:00 a.m. And, that in New York the tow truck begins backing up to that spot every Monday morning at 6:55 a.m. This, he said, it the only thing that ever happens in perfect precision in New York City! He watched my car get towed away at 7:05!
So, 45 minutes and a $15 cab ride later, I was at the car impound yard waiting in line to pay $185 plus processing fee to get my car out of jail! So far it was not a good morning.
And then everything changed!
I was second in line when the lady in front of me went to the counter for her turn. She was about my height with blond hair and perhaps in her mid-40ís. Typically, I try not to eavesdrop on other people and their business, but all of us in line could not help hearing was said in the next few minutes. The lady in front of me began to talk to the city worker behind the glass wall. She told her the make and model of car and where it was parked before being towed. Then she asked how much it would cost to get her car back. The city worker replied $185.00! The lady began to cry uncontrollably. She just kept saying over and over, “I just don’t have that kind of money.” The city worker, having become callus from many years of sad stories and excuses made no effect to comfort the distraught lady said, “You can put it on your credit card or debit card. But we will not take a check.” The reply came quickly, “You don’t understand, I just don’t have it! I don’t have a credit card, and I don’t have the money!” The city worker said, “Well, you can come back later and retrieve your car when you do have the money, but it will be an addition $20 for each day.” That did not make the matter any better. Gayle (I found her name out later), bent over doubled and began to sob, as if the pressure was too much to bare… kept repeating “I can’t pay it! I don’t have it!”
That’s when it hit me… I do! I put my hand on Gayle’s shoulder and said, “Ma’am, I don’t want to get into your business, but I was wondering if you’d give me the privilege of paying your fine for you?” Gayle looked at me with confusion. The only thing she could muster was “What?” immediately followed by “Why?” All I could say back was, “Because I can, and because I want to.”
The city worker, watching the whole thing then said out loud, “I don’t know if you’re allowed to do that!” Then we, and everyone standing in line behind us, gave her a look as if to say, “You have got to be kidding!”
“There is no law that says I can’t give someone $200, ma’am!” I stated.
“I’ll have to go to the back and see if this is OK,” she replied.
Obviously I was ruining her power trip moment! Then the other people behind me started to use expletives that are very New York, to say the least!
As the city worker started to walk away, I pulled some money out of my pocket and handed it to Gayle. “When the lady comes back,” I told her, “pull this out of your pocket and hand it to her. That way it will be coming from you.”
Two minutes later, the city worker returned, along with two of her co-workers. And with a frown, she told us that it would be fine for me to give Gayle the money. I watched as Gayle dried her tears and handed the lady the money. Her paperwork was getting processed and with a different kind of tear, Gayle looked at me and said “Thank-you.” By this time, I was crying just a little myself and I replied, “Thank YOU!” Gayle then walked away to wait for her car. I finished paying my fee and went to the waiting room myself to find Gayle gesturing toward me to come sit with her. We sat together and talked for over 30 minutes, talking about her tough life, your financial stress, and how life is hard in such a big city. We talked about Alabama, my family there and why I was in New York for the weekend. She asked me what I did for a living and when I answered, “minister.” She shouted out loud, “I knew it!” And I started to laugh! I told her how she had ministered to me much more than I could ever have ministered to her. We then talked just a few more minutes about Christ.
No, I didn’t pull out a track, or try to close the deal in some systematic way, but instead, we talked about how ruthless the law can be, how it makes no exceptions, and how Jesus paid the fine for all of us when we couldn’t pay it for ourselves.
Eventually our papers were processed and we were ready to go. As we got up Gayle asked for my address so that one day she could repay me. I told her she owed me nothing. I told her there was no strings attached, that she didn’t have to pay me anything. It was a gift. And that I didn’t do anything she wouldn’t have done herself if she could.
Ten minutes later I was back in my rental car trying to navigate the traffic mayhem. As I was stopped in bumper-to-bumper traffic I thought about all that had taken place in the past few hours and I thanked God that my car was towed!
