In Such Poor Health I Couldn’t Walk As a Stranger Practically Supported Me to a Restroom.

At the age of 19 years old, my regular journey to work was on an crowded coach. It remained jammed and was consistently standing room only when I got on.

On one specific day, I started experiencing terribly ill while the vehicle swayed around every turn. I continuously reassured myself to hold on just a little longer so the bus could arrived at my destination, at which point I could make a mad dash toward the most convenient public restroom to be sick.

The bus was approaching the avenue close to the stop when I understood I was unable to make it. All of a sudden, it was like a veil came over me. Everything just went hazy and muffled; similar to when one turned off the audio. I thought, “I am about to pass out”.

Fortunately, I stood toward the front on the bus, so I managed a few steps toward the driver and told the operator to pull over, telling him that I was about to get ill. The driver opened the bus doors and I stumbled out onto the sidewalk.

I was resolved to avoid being sick in front of a busy multi-lane road, so I gathered myself and endeavored to walk to the park on the other side, thinking I could I’d at least be able to find some privacy among some shrubs to vomit. But then I likely blacked out. I sensed my limbs, but I was unable to walk or see properly, so I began dragging myself toward the grassy area.

“Everything alright, love?”

In that instant, someone picked me up. There was an arm around my waist and a man’s voice asked, “Everything alright, love?” I managed to tell the mysterious stranger that I needed to vomit. So he virtually supported my weight into an adjacent building and put me inside the women’s restroom. He inquired whether I required him to remain with me but I declined.

After a short while, I had recovered sufficiently to sit down and from outside the stall I heard him ask, “Are you feeling better, dear? Is there anything you require?” I could not to rise at that moment but did manage to express my gratitude and after a few more minutes was able to move my legs. I made my way home and spent several days healing from which was a severe stomach virus.

I did not see the stranger’s face – just his lower half and the big container for tools he held – but he saved me, when I was at my most vulnerable.

Often this world can make you guarded, hostile, and combative. His was the sort of gesture that melts away that protective shell. He served as evidence that our default setting leans toward compassion, a quality I adore in other people.