Just as we were parking the car after coming home from dinner, someone approached from the street and asked for help. As is normal when someone approaches unannounced out of the darkness, especially with my children there, I am a bit defensive. So I immediately place myself between the stranger and my family and size up the situation.

A young lady was asking for help. After a quick scan to make sure things were as they appear, and the old spider sense not kicking in, I decide to help her. To be safe, I shoo my family in the house first. Plus it was kind of chilly out. And yes, it can get chilly even in Hawaii. We live up a hill and it gets cold there at night especially this time of year. I guess my family felt pretty ok about her too. My wife made coffee for her so she could warm up, my kids came out and kept her company. As it turns out, her motorcycle died on her as she was driving down the hill. So she did the safe thing and turned off the main road and ended up on our street. Since jump starting didn't work, my daughter (age 6) offered to pay for her repairs. She even invited her to sleep over if she needed to. Needless to say, we were all surprised. As we spoke, we found out she has been in Hawaii for only three months and she is an MP.

I offered to have her bike towed for her, but she was going to have her roommate come and pick her up. I ended up driving her home. And when I saw her using her cel phone as a light while trying to get her bike to work, I gave her a flashlight to EDC. She made it back later with her roommate. Good news is her bike is now working and she is hopefully safely home.