Sometimes all it takes is seeing each other. Our friend Bob Hone flew home to northern California after canvassing for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in Pennsylvania in the days before the election. He arrived at San Francisco airport the day after the election and was waiting for an airport shuttle with just one other person.

by Bob Hone

I had forgotten to get enough cash for the bus (one of the few businesses in northern CA that still requires cash!). And the bus was coming in minutes so I’d run out of time. 

The other traveler, Mike, a tall white guy, wore working man’s clothes and had a bushy beard barely contained by his mask. 

Perhaps because I’d be chatting with voters in PA and was more pushy than usual, I explained my situation to Mike and asked if he could spare $5 so I could get the bus. He sized me up and then graciously handed me a five!

We started chatting and I learned he’d flown in from his home in Nebraska to do some construction work in Santa Rosa – about 20 minutes north of where my brother and I live in Petaluma. 

I checked with my brother Rich via text to see if he was ok helping Mike get closer to his lodging and a cheaper taxi. Rich agreed and I offered Mike a ride northward once we got to the end of the bus line.

After Rich picked us up at the mostly deserted bus station, we started our drive north.  The conversation eventually got around to the election as Mike shared his view that the main divide in the country was between rural and urban areas. The three of us chatted about other serious issues dividing America and it was always civil and, at few points, even respectful when we sought out topics we could agree on (there were a couple). 

We reached Petaluma and were about to pull off the highway and drop Mike at a 7-11 so he could get a taxi to Santa Rosa.  Rich decided instead to drive Mike all the way to his motel (an extra 40 minutes of driving). 

As Mike pulled his bags out of Rich’s car, he said he was surprised to get a ride from Biden voters given that he voted for Trump. But he had started the reciprocal generosity by giving me $5 to catch the bus. Rich and I had returned the favor.

Join folks like Bob in #WeavingCommunity after the election.