Presumption and Assumption

(A casual conversation I had with a government clerk who told me this experience)

As I started getting ready for work on Monday morning, I looked out my window to find that the bird on the tree directly adjacent to my building were active and animated. The Mother sore to the sky after covering her nest and her eggs from predators who are aware of their vulnerability. What amazed me was that this was the 15th straight day that the Mother had left at exactly the same time. It was like a biological clock that was inside of the Mother bird just like us humans. I skipped down the steps to the coffee table and as I reached the last of the 27 steps, a little out of breath, I thought to myself, "You need to start jogging again." I had my coffee, then took my wallet and keys, locked the door behind me and started my "monumental" walk down 6 flights of stairs. It has been 2 weeks since i had co-signed the complaint letter for the elevator trouble. I smiled at Mrs. Shanti, waved her hello and proceeded with my day.

My block was the last of 16 in my complex. So getting to the main gate and the road takes a bit of time. I pass this time by watching all the kids in my complex crying as they are stacked into the school bus and the Auto Rickshaw. And as I reach the gate, I smile at the security guard. As I reached the Bus stop, I was amazed to see that it was empty. It was a very happy moment. Usually I have to wait at least 25 minutes to get a seat. 

I boarded the bus and as I reached for my purse, I felt a hand pulling my shoulder. I turned around and it was the conductor. He was a bit angry and was smacking his hand on his head. I mouthed "Sorry" and gave him the money. I got my ticket while a lot of eyes in the bus, awkwardly scanned me. They saw me White shirt tucked into my Tar black pants and my back that was hanging from my right shoulder.

After getting down on my stop, I walked to my office which was about 5 blocks away. As I was walking an old woman came up to me with her arms reaching out. She put her index finger on her lips and shook her thumb, thereby letting me know that she could not speak. I was late for work and so, I dropped a 10 Rupee note on her outstretched palm and continued walking. 

Barely a few yards away from my office, I was looking up at the billboard. I inadvertly walked into the road and collided with a car. The owner of the car walked up to me and started yelling. He was angry about his car's condition, but from what I saw nothing had happened. He kept yelling and then took a swing at me. I did not see it coming and got hit. I fell to the ground and people helped me up while holding the young man back. After a few minutes the guy stretched out his middle finger. I sat down on the pavement for a few minutes. 

At that time, a thought crept up to my mind "If only I had brought my hearing aid, this would not have happened."

Author's note: I did not want to write this.... But I wrote this because I wanted to bring to light the atrocities ANYBODY can cause while in anger. A few minutes of shouting and hitting an old man may have soothed his anger. But it did not do any good to a person who did all of this inadvertently.

Think Before You Act. Harsh Words cause much more pain than you can imagine.

Thank you

                                                                                                                           -G.Adhithya