I MET AN ANGEL NAMED BEN

I met an angel named Ben yesterday. 

I was returning from Ontario and my gas indicator said "E". That dreaded "E"! How much is left in the tank when the indicator says "E"? That is widely debated and varies from car to car. I didn't dare wait any longer before finding a gas station. 

While I have difficulty walking due to my illness, I am an outstanding driver with an excellent, unblemished record - not even a parking ticket in decades. But I am totally lost when it comes to figuring out gas pumps. I always fill up at the same station my family has been using for decades and they provide service. But last night, in the cold, exhausted after a long, dark drive, I had to find a gas station right away and I stopped at Dorval just off the highway. 

I waited. No one came to help me. I got out of my car and started pressing all the buttons on the gasoline pump machine, figuring someone at the other end would notice. No one came. I honked my horn a couple of times. No one came. 

Finally, I managed to walk over to the lit up depanneur where the man takes the money for gas.

The cashier said he couldn't help me. He was alone at the cash. There were other people working in the store, but I didn't make an issue of it. 

I told the cashier to call the police, because my gas tank was empty and I needed help to fill the tank so I could get home. 

Just then, a man standing in line behind me offered to help. And he did. He filled the gas tank for me. 

It was cold and dark and he had no hat on. Probably in his 60's, a bit rotund, he wore a simple beige or grey winter coat and he had floppy white hair. He looked like CLARENCE THE ANGEL in IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE. He wished me "A Happy New Year and Good Health!" 

I asked his name and he said, Ben. And that's all I know. 

So, if anyone out there knows Ben. pat him on the back, jingle a bell  - and tell him again for me how much I appreciate what he did for me.