The Official "Say Anything" Thread

So this car just pulls in the driveway.

It's the old guy that ran over the kitty...yeah old even compared to me.

He's wearing a short sleeve button shirt and a cap. He climbs out of the car and says hello and I introduce myself. We shake hands. He tells me his name and informs me he was the guy that killed our kitty. I wasn't home when it happened. I told him that T had just told me who he was when he pulled in and it was OK. It wasn't his fault.

He thanked me, but continued to be very concerned about what had happened and said that years ago he lost his kitty and a little 5 year old girl gave him something to help him with his loss. He asked if I would let him give it to me. He said it would make him feel better. I told him of course and thanked him. It was a stuffed animal...a reddish brown cat. I continued to tell him it wasn't his fault. It really wasn't much comfort to him. By this point I'm getting a bit weepy.

We continued talking. He told me how he was traveling this road 2 or 3 times a day because he was visiting his wife at the local nursing home. She had Alzheimer's and he couldn't care for her any more. He told me how people would get impatient with him because he was traveling the speed limit and how he didn't feel comfortable going any faster. He admitted to not being as sharp as he used to be. He is still visibly shaken. He then tells me how another cat...a black one ran in front of him right after he ran over our cat.

The whole time he's talking he's teary eyed...not because of his own troubles, but because of the guilt of running over our kitty. He saw the neighbor cat running across and slowed down...he never saw our cat until it was way too late.

He turned to leave and said thank you again for letting him make his gesture saying there must have been a reason that little 5 year old girl gave him that stuffed kitty all those years ago. I invited him to stop by any time. He thanked me again.

I don't know why I'm even telling you guys this...you probably don't care...it should probably go in the NOGAS thread.

This frail old man's actions touched me pretty strongly. He wasn't worried about his own troubles. He was concerned about taking someone's pet from them and it was almost more than he could bear. He didn't only stop when he ran the cat over. He came back to apologize again...to make a small gesture...and he hadn't done a thing wrong. A man with troubles of his own far more serious than a cat.

To Bob...that's his name. You're a gentleman the likes of which don't walk this rock too often. It was my pleasure to meet you. I wish it could have been under different circumstances.