I remembered an old experience with a kind stranger today and I felt like sharing it here :)
I must mention that I live in India before I start my story because some things might not be relatable for some people due to cultural and lifestyle differences. Also fair warning - it's a bit of a long read. But heartwarming nevertheless :)
I was in college back then and I was flying back home for my semester break. I couldn't get a direct flight and had to book an overnight train to another city and then book a flight home from that city the next day. My train was scheduled at 11 pm. Usually it would have taken 1 hour to reach the station but since it was raining quite heavily that night, I decided to leave early. It took me a lot of time to finally find a cab and because of the rain, it took even longer to reach the station. I reached the station at 10:58 pm. At that point I was not sure if I would be able to catch the train or not and I was worried that if unsuccessful, I might just get stranded in the middle of the night due to bad weather and lack of late night cabs (and trust me, in India that's not a very comfortable thought). As I prepared to run inside the station, I requested the cab driver who dropped me to stay back for 10 minutes, just in case I missed my train. Honestly, I didn't expect him to stay back because he seemed a little frustrated already because of the delay. Anyway, as luck would have it, I missed my train despite unleashing my max running speed. I was stressed out since I had a flight next afternoon and there was no other train until next morning. I came out of the station and to my surprise, the driver was still waiting. He told me he is in a hurry but he would drop me back home because he would be driving that way anyway. I spoke to my dad and he helped me book an early morning flight to the city I had the train for, so that I can still catch my next flight. I told the driver that I need to go to the airport instead. He was a little reluctant, looked borderline annoyed because it seemed like he had some other place else to be. I told him it's okay and that he can leave and I will find some other way. He started to leave but then changed his mind, turned his car around and told me that he would drop me to the airport. I was low on cash too (we didn't have digital payment options back then). He initially asked for a huge amount for the airport drop but then he was okay with whatever I can pay him with my limited money. The curse of being a woman is such that I immediately doubted his intentions and got concerned about my safety. But again, I had no other options and there was no guarantee if I would find another cab at all. So I hopped on to his cab again, but this time I was more alert and I secretly held on to my pocket knife just in case things went south at any moment. Eventually we got talking and I learnt that his name was Ali. I also noticed he has been getting some calls but I couldn't understand the language. And then I got to know why he was frustrated initially and was in such a hurry to get back home. It was his first anniversary and his wife had made a special dinner and was waiting for him to have it together. I felt terrible in that moment. He told me not to feel bad about it as it was his decision to turn back and take me to the airport. He said he wouldn't be able to look at himself in the mirror or even at his wife if he left a girl stranded like that and compromise her safety. He said his wife told him that the anniversary dinner can wait or maybe they can just have it for breakfast. We talked about his love story, his wife, their interreligious marriage and the struggles they had to face and how much he loves his wife, and by the time the ride ended, I no longer had my pocket knife out. He asked if he should wait till my check-in begins but I assured him that it's a much safer place and I would be fine and that he should go home to his wife now. It was already 1 am by then.
Anyway I successfully managed to catch my flight and as soon as I landed in the morning, the first call I get was from Ali. He had saved my number just to make sure that I had reached safely. And in that moment, I felt so guilty about doubting his intentions. At the same time, I also felt this rush of warmth in my heart because of the kindness that Ali and his wife decided to show to a complete stranger, while compromising their own important day. I remember feeling that warmth for the whole day.
The story doesn't end here though. There is another heartwarming twist. One year later, I booked a cab to go somewhere. As soon as I got into the cab, I saw the driver watching me in the mirror and smiling. I was confused and thought if I should be worried. That's when he asked me if I recognized him and before I could say anything, he said "I don't know if you remember me but I remember you very well. I dropped you from the station to the airport one year ago when you missed your train. You don't forget such encounters easily and I was so happy that I got your booking again today. I just had to come and say hello again." You have no idea how pleasantly surprised and happy I was to meet Ali again, one whole year later and to think that he remembers my name, face and address. Ah, fate works wonderfully sometimes! I honestly didn't recognise him as easily because he had grown a lot of facial hair and I was too stressed that night to pay attention to his looks and it was dark most of the part. But I was so glad that he recognized me. We got chatting again and he told me that they had a late night candlelit anniversary dinner that night and now they are even expecting a baby. My heart was so full, I can't explain it in words here. Before I got down at my stop, I paid him some extra money (that I couldn't pay him enough that night) and told him to celebrate that anniversary again and buy some gifts for the baby as well. That day as I got down from Ali's cab, I felt the same warmth in my heart that I felt one year ago when I said bye to him at the airport.
On most days, I lose faith in humanity but people like Ali and his wife restore my faith and make me believe that the good people are still out there.