21st July 2011
Just as I stopped my bike at red in the signal near Central Station today, saw that there was a small piece of wooden plank lying on the road some 10 feet away from me. It could have fallen from any truck that had gone ahead. A part of it was broken and had some considerably sized splinters too.
My normal mind considered the implications of someone walking on it by mistake or a vehicle’s tyre getting punctured by it and so on and the first reaction was to go, pick it up and lay it aside in the road median crevice. But my logical mind started considering the pros and cons of leaving my bike in the middle of the road, the possibilities of the signal turning to green, the vehicles behind honking at me and so on.
Just as my educated, civilized mind was indulging in all such elaborate thought process, an auto driver behind me, looking like a ruffian, moved his vehicle ahead into the space between me and the wooden plank, turned off the ignition of this vehicle, got down, went and picked the wooden plank and the small chip fallen from it, threw it into the road median crevice and walked back to his vehicle. Just then the signal turned green.
I learnt a great lesson from that unknown stranger today. He has taught me that, at times, it just is OK not to act so civilized and do the littlest good deed, without just getting into elaborate emotional patterns and logical delving about it!
Just as I stopped my bike at red in the signal near Central Station today, saw that there was a small piece of wooden plank lying on the road some 10 feet away from me. It could have fallen from any truck that had gone ahead. A part of it was broken and had some considerably sized splinters too.
My normal mind considered the implications of someone walking on it by mistake or a vehicle’s tyre getting punctured by it and so on and the first reaction was to go, pick it up and lay it aside in the road median crevice. But my logical mind started considering the pros and cons of leaving my bike in the middle of the road, the possibilities of the signal turning to green, the vehicles behind honking at me and so on.
Just as my educated, civilized mind was indulging in all such elaborate thought process, an auto driver behind me, looking like a ruffian, moved his vehicle ahead into the space between me and the wooden plank, turned off the ignition of this vehicle, got down, went and picked the wooden plank and the small chip fallen from it, threw it into the road median crevice and walked back to his vehicle. Just then the signal turned green.
I learnt a great lesson from that unknown stranger today. He has taught me that, at times, it just is OK not to act so civilized and do the littlest good deed, without just getting into elaborate emotional patterns and logical delving about it!
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.