From Hidden Brain Media, I'm Shankar Vedantam. This is my unsung hero, stories where one person reached

out to help another in a time of need.

My unsung hero is the kind stranger who helped me get to my grandfather's funeral.

And he just says, today you, tomorrow me.

Thank you very much for changing my life.

Today's story comes from Ethan Cross. Shortly after my wife and I were married,

I developed a habit of playing with my wedding ring.

I'd slide the ring over my knuckle throughout the day and nervously twirled around.

Whenever my wife or parents or in-laws caught me doing this, they'd immediately say,

stop playing with your ring, you're going to lose it.

But I just kept happily twirling it around.

Fast forward a few weeks, we're living in New York City at the time,

and I have a presentation to give uptown at Columbia University. I jump on the subway, and to form immediately start playing with my ring.

I start walking to the subway exit still playing with my ring.

As I get a few feet away from the door, the ring slides off my finger, bounces once,

bounces twice, and then somehow manages to find the crevice between the subway and the platform. Not knowing what to do, I visually

landmark where I exited the train. Four or five hours later, I returned to the subway station and immediately walked towards the

booth housing the subway attended.

I looked through the bulletproof window separating us and see a gruff looking guy reading what looks like the New York

post who appears to have zero interest in talking to me.

I knock on the window to get his attention by saying,

Sir, you've got to help me.

...