Short Version: When we needed it most, people stepped up to help.  We should do the same if we saw someone in need.

The Whole Story: This life lesson took place on my annual Father’s Day camping trip with my boys.  I go camping (and love it), while my wife gets a weekend to herself (aka Mother’s Day Part Deux).  This was the first trip with all 3 boys (ages 2, 5, and 7) in 2015; a car camping trip to Yellowstone Lake State Park in southern Wisconsin.  It’s a nice park known for its bat population that keeps mosquito population in check.  The nightly bat flight is quite a thing to watch.

With one great night already complete, a great hike around the main trail in the morning, and late morning rain coming to an end, we decided to venture out and bike down the big hill to get some ice cream at the park concession stand.  I went first with our youngest in the bike trailer, followed by the older 2 boys on their own bikes.

Half way down the hill, I heard a yell and turned around to see Charlie (age 5) in an all out panic.  His front wheel was wobbling back and forth as he tried to gain control, but that quickly went worse.  His front wheel turned hard to the side, and he went hard over the handlebars, holding on the entire way.  He was hurt bad, in ways I wasn’t prepared to handle, especially being most of the way down this hill, away from our site and vehicle, and with limited first aid equipment.

Here’s where the story gets happier: as I was trying to calm down my oldest son and stay calm myself, two groups of people stopped.  They grabbed our bikes and trailer and put them in the back of a pickup.  They escorted Charlie and I into one vehicle and Henry and Jack in another and brought us back to our campsite.  We quickly put everyone in the minivan, left everything else sitting out, and drove to the ER.

This goofy kid:

Went to this:

Fortunately, everything worked out as good as could be expected.  We ended our trip early, but no permanent damage and no broken bones.  Thanks to some very nice people, we were able to quickly get the help we needed.  I don’t know what I would have done without their help.  I thanked them profusely when they dropped us at our site, but I couldn’t repay them.  Instead, I learned and taught the lesson of how important it is to help people in need.  If I – or my kids – ever come across a situation like that, the appreciation of the good we saw that day will guide us.

Oh, and that goofy kid…still goofy: