In Such Poor Health I Was Unable to Walk Until a Fellow Passenger Essentially Lifted Me to the Toilets.

During my nineteenth year, my morning travel was on an packed public transport. The vehicle was always crowded and invariably became completely full when I got on.

During a certain commute, I was feeling incredibly sick when the coach swayed around each corner. I continuously reassured myself to persevere another few kilometres until the bus arrived at where I needed to get off, so I could then rush hurriedly to the closest public toilet to be sick.

The bus was approaching the street towards my stop and it dawned on me I was unable to hold on. In an instant, it felt as if a curtain fell over me. The world became blank and silent; like someone had turned off the audio. I said to myself, “I’m going to faint”.

Thankfully, I was positioned close to the driver of the bus, so I managed a couple of steps toward the driver and requested that the driver to open the doors, explaining to him I was going to vomit. He opened the bus doors and I stumbled out onto the sidewalk.

I was determined not to vomit in front of a busy multi-lane road, so I forced myself up and began attempting to walk across to the park opposite the street, where I believed it would allow me to find some privacy among some shrubs to throw up. Yet I apparently blacked out. I sensed my limbs, but I couldn’t walk or see properly, so I began dragging myself toward the grassy area.

“You right, love?”

Right then, I got scooped up. There was an arm around my waist and a man’s voice asked, “Are you okay, dear?” I told this unknown man that I needed to get to a bathroom. So he virtually carried me down into an adjacent building and placed me inside the women’s restroom. He inquired if I wanted him to remain with me but I refused.

After a short while, I had recovered enough to sit on the restroom floor when from beyond the door I heard him ask, “Are you feeling better, dear? Is there anything you require?” I wasn’t able to stand up at that moment but I did succeed to express my gratitude and shortly thereafter recovered the use of my limbs. I made my way home and spent the next few days getting over which was a horrible case of gastroenteritis.

I did not see the stranger’s face – just his lower half along with a sizable steelwork tools container he had with him – but he saved me, when I was in my weakest state.

Often this world tends to make people self-protective, pushy, and rivalrous. What he did was the kind of action that undoes that emotional callousness. He demonstrated that people’s natural inclination is to be kind, a trait I cherish about my fellow humans.