I saw your call for acts of kindness in the daily-ish email, and wanted to share my story.
Last summer, we were thwarted by smoke from local wildfires for an overnight backpacking trip we had planned for months. I work a lot of weekends, and my significant other has a strict weekday schedule. Time off together can be rare.
The morning we were scheduled to leave, the skies in Seattle were red/orange with smoke. We felt we had to go, and hoped that we would find clear skies once we reached the Mt. Baker area. The drive up was awful, but as we neared our destination, things looked pretty good! As we were packing our bags to leave the car, the winds shifted and smoke started pouring in to the area. We were standing at the trailhead trying to make a decision while we still had phone service and relay the news back to our friends that intended to start a few hours behind us. A nice couple with two dogs were looking at the map with us, and asked us what our plans were. We stated that after the long drive we were considering doing the trail even with the smoke. They wished us luck and they went down the trail.
We started down the trail, and the smoke kept getting thicker. We realized there was no way it would be healthy to continue, and that the promised spectacular views would be completely gone. We pulled over on the side of the trail to find cell service and contact our friends to abort. As we're texting/holding the phone up in the air to get the messages out, the lady with the two dogs reappeared. She learned that we were aborting, and offered for us to camp in their backyard on Lake Whatcom. They were even sure if they were going to be home that evening, or the next day. She gave us detailed directions, told us where the spare key was, and encouraged us to use their kitchen and bathroom in the house. We asked if our two friends with their dog could join. Absolutely! Complete trust in four young adults.
We ended up having a magical time on Lake Whatcom using their kayaks, jumping off the dock, and swimming. The smoke was far enough away not to bother us, but to give us a sunset to remember.
The couple did in fact come home that evening, and went above and beyond to greet us with lattes the next morning. Such generosity from complete strangers is not something you find often in this world, and prompted me to share the story on this thread.
