Just a simple act.....

Saturday , a day set aside to complete my pending household chores. Had to rush to Panjim that day. Not being the sophiscated person that i am, i took the local city bus as usual.

Many may have experienced the grievances that a traveller would have in these buses. Apart from the conductor screaming, fudhea yoh and fhatti wohse (the onesgood at these konkani spelling can ignore the error for the others it basically means in ple enlgish , push in front and fall on the others or go back and get squeezed among the others) , there are others problems, people trying to rob your purses, others just starring at you as though a woman is some sign of lustful thoughts etc.

This incident happened in one such scenario. Some of these buses have the first two seats reserved for the handicapped or senior citizens, not that many of us pay much attention to what is written on these buses. Why would we, No smoking written have smokers smoking, 20 Standing written have atleast 50 squeezed in the bus. Anways, a senior citizen was standing next to the reserved seat for senior citizen that was taken by this youth. After a while he happened to lean on the youth for a second , thanks to the crowd pushing him around. The youth in his negligence, gestured the old man to stand properly. The old man was furious and grumbled back saying" you are seatin in a seat reserved for senior citizen and on the top you are telling me how to stand". He was right , i had no doubth ! The youth being a Maharastrian didnt understand what the old man said and continued seating and smiling as though some joke was cracked. His friend standing howver noticed this and gestured him to stand and give seat to the poor old man. The man was delighted , thanked the youth , however it left me stunnned. It never happened rather i never realised it before ! i had been in those reserved seats a number of times but perhaps its been only on a few occassion that i actually got up and offered that seat to the elderly membersof my society. A simple gesture that day , that too from a person who didnt understand the language made me realisem, it was time i did something about it. What about you ... would you offer a seat of a bus, reserved or not to anyone in need , even though you felt otherwise ???

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