There are no coincidences

So let me tell you about my day. The alarm went off, and it felt far too early. I rolled over, hit the snooze, and stole a little more sleep before crawling out of bed. After showering and shaving in a state more groggy than usual, I was off for a rehearsal in Kalamazoo.

It was about twenty minutes into my ride that I happened to glance at the car radio and saw the time. I was on the road an hour earlier than I needed to be. I could have still been in bed, dozing away, but for some reason, when I set the alarm last night, I bumped the time forward by one hour. Damn.

There was no reason to turn back, so I decided I'd make the best of it and find a place to sit down and enjoy breakfast and the paper in Kalamazoo. I turned off onto my normal exit and saw a Russ' on the right hand side of the road. I sort of cringed, wondering if this was the best K'zoo had to offer me this morning. I've always been a bit proud of the fact that I've never set foot in a Russ' before, which is a West Michigan Dutch landmark, reason enough to steer clear in my book. I pulled in, but just couldn't face the thought of crossing the line. Off down the road to Colonial Kitchen.

I opened the door, and was immediately engulfed in cigarette smoke. There are few smells I find so abhorrent as the mixture of pancakes, waffles, eggs, coffee, and cigarette smoke. When you eat at one of these smoky breakfast joints, your clothes reek for the rest of the day. I've always hated that smell, and just couldn't stomach it this morning. Strike out at Colonial Kitchen--Russ' here I come.

Russ' thankfully is smoke free. I plopped down at a booth behind a couple roughly the age of my parents. They were some of the younger people in the restaurant--it's that kind of restaurant.

I was lost in the paper, minding my own business. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the couple in the booth in front of me get up as if they were about to leave. I found this odd, since they had just been served their food a moment before. I saw the diminutive woman get behind her very tall husband, and wrap her arms around his waist, tugging on him. I suddenly realized what was going on: the man was choking.

I asked the woman if she needed help, and she frantically said yes. I jumped out of my seat, rushed over to the guy and got behind him, and did the Heimlich maneuver on him a couple of times. I lifted him right up off the floor, and thankfully, it worked.

It was a very bizarre scene. After it was done, it was really as if nothing had happened. He thanked me, and I said no problem. I think some people in the restaurant didn't even have a clue as to what happened, though the people next to me told me that I was that guy's guardian angel this morning. It was all rather awkward and uncomfortable--they went back to their booth, and calmly finished their breakfast. I went back to reading my paper, as if nothing happened. The couple and I had a few minor exchanges: they thanked me again, and I made some comment about being grateful that my Boy Scout training came right to mind, but that was the extent of it.

As they got up to leave, the man thanked me again, grabbed my check, and bought my breakfast. I told him he didn't have to do that, but he insisted, and I'd imagine I'd do the same thing. The waitress told me I saved the guy's life, and the manager thanked me, but it all felt surreal to me.

Looking around the restaurant, I realized I was the biggest guy there, besides the guy who I did the Heimlich on. Most of the men were old and frail, and may not have been strong enough to do the Heimlich on the guy. The manager would have been, but he must have been back in the kitchen when this all happened. I reflected on these things throughout the day, and realized that I was supposed to be there.

I messed up my alarm, was on the road an hour early, stopped once at Russ' and turned away, and then went back because of a smoky restaurant up the road--a Russ' I've driven by hundreds of times over the past five or six years and never once thought of stopping. It was no coincidence that I was there this morning.

It's all pretty humbling.