Some of the “good old ways” still exist in Montana

…such as neighbors helping neighbors. Yesterday I was making a turn onto the edge of a field in somewhat rural Missoula, (doing my job for the Census Bureau) and there was a ditch I didn’t see in the tall grass, and of course, the car went down in it.

Two wheels down, two wheels still on the road. I sat there for a couple minutes, stunned, my Field Supervisor from work was with me. I told her I could call for a tow truck but she said to give it a few minutes to see what happened. Several people stopped to see if we needed help. One, a young man who thought he had a chain in the back of his truck, but he didn’t. He said he’d go home and get one and come back. Meanwhile more people stopped to see if they could help, so heartwarming that so many people were concerned enough.

The young man came back, connected our vehicles and pulled the car out of the ditch and back onto the road. He said he was a ranch kid, grew up in Dillon, and you’d always stop if you saw someone in distress on the road. I offered him money, which he, at first refused, but then I said “this would buy you a lot of Big Dipper” and his face lit up and he said “okay, thanks”. He had just discovered Big Dipper last week and boy howdy, he was already a fan.

I was so grateful for the help and especially in these times when there is so much unprovoked violence in other parts of the country, I was glad again, to be living in Montana, the Last Best Place. D