Random Acts

I was riding my bicycle home from work on Friday night at 7:00 up the Hudson River Park bike path thinking, "I don't have anything to write about for my blog."
Suddenly I was flying through the air.
With my hands out I hit the ground.
And was lying on my back on the bike path.
What happened was a girl in front of me towards the right suddenly swerved toward the left to run along the river. She never looked and had on ear phones. "Look out!" I yelled as I slammed on the brakes trying not to crash into her. Then I went flying and was on my back.
In twenty years riding a bike in New York I have been in two other accidents, also both on the Hudson River bike path. Though I don't ride fast, it is a dangerous place, with walkers, runners, roller bladers, bikers. As I was lying on the ground I was thinking, "Oh great," because both other times, I fractured my arm. This time though nothing hurt right away. The girl said, "Gosh that was totally my fault!" I said, "You have to be more careful." Another woman was bending over me, "Are you OK?" She had on a black tank top and black pants. "I think I'm OK," I said with relief. I didn't get hurt. I was really lucky. "Are you sure?" she said. She helped me get up. "That can be a really traumatic thing. Take a few breaths." She was rubbing my arm. I looked in her face – her eyes sparkled. "I think I'm mostly tired," I said. "Well take it easy because that can be a shock." She stopped and attended to me and really helped me. "Thank you very much," I said to her as I got on my bike and rather wobbily rode away. Though she was a stranger I was very grateful to have someone there with me, this angel in black.
Acts of kindness often mean more than we know.
It reminds me of another story. The day that Ted and I moved off of Jane Street has a long and hard day. Everything went fine, but still it was difficult, not the kind of day you look forward to. At 9:00 in the morning we were sitting amidst piles of boxes waiting for the movers to arrive when the door bell ring. Delivery. It was a gift from our friends Vanity Fair editor Aimee Bell and writer David Kamp – a bottle of champagne and a thoughtful note. We were both moved by it. It lifted the day and we definitely felt better knowing that friends were thinking of us.
Acts of kindness often mean more than we know.