Victoria Nguyen

I came back home really inspired and excited to make some changes in my life.

I quit my job, I packed up my entire life in a car, and I said goodbye to friends and family and moved to Texas.

And I was just trying to develop this newfound sense of agency over my life.

But nearly a year later, it's August of 2023, and I'm on the road again, this time alone and without Herschel.

I was driving back to Texas after spending a really amazing and healing summer back in my hometown in California, and I was feeling as confused and stuck as ever.

I kept questioning whether or not I had made the right decision to move away from everything that I had known and loved the year before.

But I continued to drive on.

And about six hours into that drive, my gas was running low.

So I stopped into a nearby station and I grabbed some snacks.

I brought it to the counter and I asked the cashier if he could put $60 on my pump.

I didn't really think much of it until I walked outside, and it dawned on me that I was not in California anymore.

I definitely overpaid for this gas.

But I pumped my tank full, and sure enough, I had extra to spare.

And so I looked around to see who I could offer this gas to.

Maybe I could help somebody out that day.

There was a woman who was standing outside of her van alone, and she sort of caught my eye.

And so I followed my feet, and I walked up to her, and I offered her what was left on my pump.

And at first, she looked at me like I was crazy.

And me being an overthinker, I immediately felt embarrassed for even asking such a thing.

But she finally looks down at the ground and she softly goes, sure, that would be great.