Earlier this week I was asked if I was Metis. This actually brought a smile to my face as I responded with a yes. I have never been told I look Metis before so this surprised me. This man's question gave my morning a lovely start, not because of the topic but because of the conversation that ensued.
This was one of the mornings that I woke up at 4:30am to shower, make breakfast and lunch before hopping on my bus at 6 only to get to Portage and wait 10 minutes to transfer. On this particular morning I approached the bus shelter at a brisk pace eager to get out of the wind.
A habit I have developed over the years is observing people. I often wonder why people do what they do and I put things together as if it were a jigsaw puzzle waiting to be solved. At this bus stop many people stood outside, some looked a but chilled. In my mind I would much rather be in a comfortable bus shelter than having to tighten my scarf every few moments. I could be wrong about my next thought and, I know it sounds like I'm judging these random people waiting for the bus, but I too had contemplated waiting outside as I saw the two people in the shelter.
Yes this makes me sound judgmental and rude but I didn't let that side of me win. I decided that I would enter the shack because they are people too and my fears shouldn't stand in the way of me treating them that way.
Now, let me tell you about the people in the bus shelter. They were; noticeably drunk, loud, laughing, and using big gestures. It's easy to stay in ones comfort zone as to not risk the chance of being bothered with someone else's drama, but who are we trying to kid, we have no control over anything. Who's to say me standing 2 feet on the other side of the glass is actually a safe place.
As I was saying earlier, this interaction became a lovely start to my day. I'm disappointed to say that even though I stepped out of my comfort zone and fought my desire to stay in my alone and "safe" zone, I did not have the courage to strike up a conversation. I was however glad the man who now stood in front of me had. The man proudly told me his full name as I introduced myself. The woman who I learned was his cousin told me stories of their parents and then shared a scary experience she had that morning. Luckily her cousin scared off the potential rapist. It broke my heart to hear she was attacked like that. I don't deal with drunk people very often but as I looked her in the eyes it was if she was sober. I saw her, someone who deserved love. She went on to tell me another happier story from her life. I was annoyed as I saw my bus approaching, I wanted to continue to listen. I told them it was nice chatting with the two of them and she said it was nice meeting.
Even though they were drunk they had a spirit of kindness. I take this as a learning lesson, people are people. We all have hurts. The thing we forget is that we all have love to give. We need to start pouring good into the world, and that means stepping out of our comfort zones.
Join me.
