When it comes to faith in humanity I have to share an experience I will never forget.
It happened in a train, near noon in the middle of July in the south of France. Which for those familiar should tell you something about how hot it was. For those unfamiliar it's pretty damn hot particularly for people like yours truly who do not take heat well.
The train was packed, which did not help the heat. I had eaten but a handful of nuts in the morning, which was a bad decision. I didn't have a seat, which isn't necessarily an issue. Usually.
But the heat and the lack of food (mostly the heat) made a bad combination. The lightheadedness fell on me like an anvil. Sudden. Heavy. I felt nauseous which was truly the worst part because is there a worse place to puke than in a packed train? I didn't think so and I still don't.
People noticed. I don't know if it was the swaying or maybe I had gone visibly pale but three different people got up to give me their seat. Or four. I don't know, but it was a lot. The rules of politeness and manners don't apply when you're afraid you're gonna puke so I very gratefully took a seat.
A woman gave me a chocolate biscuit, she said she kept this sort of thing in her bag always because her son has diabetes. Two people offered me water but I had my own which I did drink. Two other people offered me more food. A man offered me vitamins. I hesitated and he gave me the package so I could check for myself it wasn't, like, drugs. I am mildly ashamed to say that I did not hesitate for reasons of a stranger giving me medicine but because I thought the orange-flavored vitamins might not mix super well with the chocolate biscuit I was eating. For my defense, sensory issues can be bad and I already wasn't feeling well. But I did learn my lesson about trusting strangers with medicine. This one was trustworthy, but still. Man who gave me vitamins, kudos to you for making sure I knew it wasn't drugs.
People asked me if I knew what was wrong. Two older people gently chastised me for not eating enough in this weather. Several asked where I as getting off and were visibly relieved when I said my stop was soon. They kept subtly checking on me trough the train ride and several people waved goodbye when I got off.
All those strangers coming together without a second's hesitation when I felt unwell. When you think about it, that's, like, a low bar. Obviously if someone visibly wasn't feeling well I would try to help. But the way they all moved together and didn't wait for someone else to offer a seat or food or water. The way they kept checking on me. That's what I want to be like.
And it's one of the experiences that makes me keep faith in humanity, so I thought this was the right place to share it.
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