I Was So Ill I Was Unable to Walk When a Man Virtually Carried Me to a Restroom.

At the age of 19 years old, my daily commute meant taking an crowded coach. It remained jammed and was consistently standing room only when I got on.

During a certain commute, I was feeling terribly ill as the bus swayed around the bends. I continuously reassured myself to endure for a few more stops before the bus got to my destination, at which point I could rush hurriedly toward the most convenient public toilet to vomit.

The bus was approaching the street towards my stop and it dawned on me I would not be to make it. All of a sudden, it seemed a veil came over me. My vision turned blank and silent; similar to when one cut the sound. I thought, “I will lose consciousness”.

Luckily I was near the front on the bus, so I managed several steps to ask the driver and told the operator to pull over, telling him I was going to be sick. The driver opened the bus doors and I hurriedly stepped out onto the street.

I was resolved not to vomit before six lanes of traffic, so I gathered myself and started trying to stumble to the park across the road, thinking I could I could at least discreetly hide near some foliage to be sick. Yet I likely blacked out. I could feel my physical self, yet I couldn’t walk and my vision was blurry, so I started crawling towards the grassy area.

“You right, love?”

Right then, I was lifted 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 required to get to a bathroom. Thus, he practically helped me walk down into an adjacent building and guided me inside the women’s restroom. He wanted to know if I wanted him to stay with me but I declined.

Not long after, I felt better enough to sit down when from beyond the door I heard him ask, “Are you OK, love? Do you need anything?” I was incapable to stand up at that moment but I did succeed to express my gratitude and shortly thereafter was able to move my feet. I made my way home passing several days recovering from which was a nasty tummy bug.

I never saw the stranger’s face – only his legs and a large steelwork tools container he was carrying – yet he rescued me, when I was at my most vulnerable.

Many times, life tends to make people guarded, hostile, and combative. His was the sort of gesture that melts away that protective shell. He was proof that our default setting is towards kindness, a quality I adore about my fellow humans.