A friend shared this story with me, and I thought it deserved wider distribution than just my 2 ears. During a weekend of Sturgis Falls weekend in Cedar Falls, Iowa (a local celebration with parades, food vendors, music, and a lot to do for the weekend). My friend and her husband live several blocks from the main activity. As they were coming home on Sunday afternoon from an outing, her husband took the dog for a walk, and she saw a "little old lady" sitting on the corner in a lawn chair. She thought

that odd... as there was no parade due, so she went over to

visit. The lady explained that she and her friend had been to some of the festivities and were looking for her car, and they couldn't find it, so her friend had her sit on the corner as

"she" went to find the car. She left with the admonition, "Do not leave this place." "How long have you been sitting here?" my friend asked. "A couple of hours," she replied. "Oh my, how are you? Can I help - would you like some water?" "Yes, that would be nice, and may I use your restroom?" After being refreshed, the little old lady (who was 82) came right back out to the corner to wait for her friend to find her. After a bit, she saw her son

coming up the sidewalk, and she was so grateful, but now she was concerned about her friend who had not returned, so she sent her son to find her...again leaving the lady to

wait. In the middle of this, a policeman wandered by and asked what was happening. And after hearing the story decided to wait until everyone was found. It seems that the ladies were several blocks past where they thought they parked their car.

Her friend went to find the car and couldn’t, so she went back to the corner, where she "thought" she left her friend - she was gone. She panicked and called the little old lady’s son, who came to help search for his mother. After several misses, all were soon reunited, and off they went. I ask: where, but in a small town in Iowa, can you leave an 82-year-old lady sitting on a corner in a lawn chair and not have her attacked, robbed, or molested?

On the contrary - she was taken in by a stranger, made comfortable, and had someone to wait with her. It makes me proud to be from Iowa.