I Was So Ill I Couldn’t Walk As a Stranger Essentially Lifted Me to a Restroom.

Back when I was nineteenth year, my daily commute was on an crowded coach. It remained crowded and was consistently standing room only by the time I stepped aboard.

During a certain commute, I started experiencing terribly ill as the bus lurched around each corner. I kept telling myself to endure for a few more stops so the bus could reached my stop, at which point I could sprint quickly to the closest washroom to be sick.

As we neared the road leading to my stop and I realised I was unable to make it. In an instant, it felt as if a veil came over me. Everything just went white and really quiet; similar to when one turned off the audio. My mind raced, “I’m going to faint”.

Fortunately, I stood toward the front of the bus, so I took several steps toward the driver and requested that the driver to stop, explaining to him I needed to vomit. He opened the bus doors and I stumbled out on to the pavement.

I was determined not to vomit before six lanes of traffic, so I gathered myself and began attempting to walk across to the park on the other side, where I thought I could at least discreetly hide near some foliage to throw up. Yet I must have fainted. I could feel my physical self, yet I couldn’t walk or see clearly, leading me to start crawling towards the park.

“Are you okay, dear?”

In that instant, I was lifted up. There was an arm around my waist and a man’s voice asked, “You right, love?” I told this mysterious stranger that I required to get to a bathroom. So he virtually carried me over to an adjacent building and guided me inside the women’s restroom. He inquired if I wanted him to stay with me but I refused.

Not long after, I felt better enough to sit down and from outside the stall I heard him ask, “Are you OK, love? Is there anything you require?” I wasn’t able to get up right away but did manage to thank him and shortly thereafter regained the function of my legs. I made my way home and spent several days healing from what was later diagnosed as a severe stomach virus.

I never glimpsed his features – only his legs and a large metal toolbox he was carrying – yet he rescued me, when I was at my most vulnerable.

Frequently, society can make you self-protective, pushy, and rivalrous. His act was the type of kindness that reverses that hardening of the heart. He served as evidence that our default setting leans toward compassion, a quality I adore about my fellow humans.