A Rainy Day

It was one of those days one never wished to be out of the house for any reason at all. I was caught by the rain on my way home after a long day. Although as tired as I was I managed to walk at a fast pace so I could get home on time. I hurried through the central park with shivering hands and a dripping body, I was not aware of the dead end in front of me. I was right before a mighty flood. “No way”, I said to myself. “I am never going to put my feet into that dirty water!!!” As I saw a car coming my way heading towards the flood, I had a ray of hope thinking I could use the help of a stranger’s car to pass through the flood. As the car slowed down to pass, I desperately knocked on the driver’s window. The man driving looked at me with a stern face but I did not care, I was soaked and wanted to go home. He did not wind down his window so I made a gesture clasping my two hands together, begging him to let me into his car to get me out of that dead end thinking he would have a little compassion on a soaked girl. He turned the other way and zoomed off. “Ahh!!”, I thought. “Are people this heartless?”. I shook my head as I kept looking out for accessible corners. I managed to find an elevated slab, so I used that as a ladder to get to a platform with less water.

Now at the bus park, the prices the drivers charge to a ride home was so outrageous that people responded in anger but entered the vehicle regardless. And then I saw a man pricing a cab going towards my direction. As he was entering the cab, I begged him to allow me follow him. Unfortunately, he just looked at me in disgust and entered the vehicle containing just himself and the driver. They zoomed off. I was stunned at the way people acted towards people in need especially when the help rendered won’t take anything from them. They never cared if it was raining heavily or not, they just ignored a girl they could easily help. Had it come to this? Have human beings now become so uncompassionate? It baffled me.

As I waited in frustration for an available vehicle, I whispered a short prayer, “Holy spirit please take control”. Not long after, an empty bus came by. It stopped in front of me and I was privileged to get the front seat. I was glad. Finally!!! I was going home. As other passengers struggled to secure seats at the back, a lady came to me wanting to share my tiny seat with me. “Please I cannot share this space oo, it’s just for one person!!!”, I exclaimed in anger. The woman withdrew in frustration. Immediately, I thought of the two men I met earlier and how selfish they were. I felt the deepest guilt I had never felt before. Normally, the front seat was meant for one passenger but I still felt the sense of duty to help this woman. As I turned to look at her, I noticed that she had a baby on her back; that was it!! I had to help her no matter the discomfort. I beckoned on her to come and join me and immediately, I saw the delight on her face. As she managed to squeeze in, I realized she had another child that she dragged along. With the heavy downpour and the uncomfortable situation, I was glad I helped her.

On my way back home I pondered on the experiences I had that evening. It was easy to relate it to life itself. Life is full of ups and downs, when the rainy day comes, there are people who can actually help, but we all have that human nature where we only want everything to ourselves. We get so carried away with our own life that we forget to listen to those who need a little push from us. Yes, we know we can do it. Yes, we know it won’t take anything from us. But somehow we know no one would reward us for a good deed, so we choose to remain silent. In the midst of my frustration, after those men ignored me when they could help, I now saw the reason why some successful people find it hard to help other people in need. On their way to the top, they equally face such rejection which leaves a permanent scar in their heart, making it hard for them to help others. Helping that woman made me understand that we can go out of our way for others no matter how bad others treated us in the past. It may be a blessing in disguise. I did not let my past experience determine the way I treated others. It was a lesson I needed to learn on my own.

As I hurried down the cold street to my gate, I was thankful for being a blessing to a stranger on a rainy day.