I became a single dad unexpectedly when Emma’s mom left when she was three, and I quickly learned to balance being nurturing and strong. Thanksgiving found us driving to my parents’ house through the first snow, Emma singing in the backseat, when we spotted an elderly couple stranded with a flat tire. I told Emma to stay in the car and ran over to help. The couple was cold, frustrated, and in pain, but together we got the spare on. Their relief was palpable, and Emma gave me a proud thumbs-up.
A week later, I was making Emma’s lunch when my mom shouted for me to turn on the news. The couple had been interviewed about their “Thanksgiving miracle,” and there I was on TV—the man and his little girl who had saved them. They invited us over to thank us in person.
When we arrived, we were welcomed warmly, and their granddaughter, Angie, was there. Conversation flowed naturally, Emma bonded instantly with her, and it became clear the grandparents had orchestrated a gentle matchmaking plan. Two years later, Angie and I are still together, our wedding this spring. Emma calls her “my almost-mom,” and my parents adore her.
All of it began with a small act of kindness on a snowy highway—a flat tire that ended up changing my life completely.