a lesson in kindness

A lesson in kindness. living somewhere as stimulating as New York City can admittedly cause desensitization. You begin to see people as objects you pass on your commute - the humanness begins to fade away. The other night after work, I was riding the R train. As I squeezed into the subway car I saw the only vacant seat was beside a young woman. She appeared to be homeless and was ‘bobbing’ her head to nonexistent music. I opted to stand in the aisle to avoid sitting beside her. Why? …When did I start to see people like this young woman as a threat, instead of seeing her as a sister? At the next stop, a middle-aged, kind-faced man joined our car. He had a string instrument case strapped across his shoulders. He squeezed in the aisle beside me and stood in front of the young woman. She smiled at him, “Do you play music?” He smiled back, “Yes, I just finished a performance. Do you like music?” “Oh, very much!” …. She began bobbing her head and he smiled down at her… not in an odd or threatening way, but in a loving somewhat paternalistic manner. He held out a coffee cup to her, “Do you want this? It’s a cappuccino. I haven’t even had a sip, and you might not even like it, but you’re welcome to have it.” She looked at the cup, and at the man. “What is it?” He smiled again, “It’s like a coffee, but they place a large dollop of foam on the top. Like I said, you might hate it, but it’s warm.” She took the cup from the man and popped off the lid. She dipped her finger in the foam, sniffed it curiously, and placed a bit on her tongue. She smiled in approval and began to drink the cappuccino. He smiled kindly back, and asked, “What do you want to do someday?” She looked down at her feet, embarassed, “I don’t know, sir. I’m not good at much.” He shook his head, “Not a chance. You and that big smile of your’s are way too bright. You’re going to do big, great things.” She sipped the final bits of her cappuccino and then with a large grin exclaimed “I just hope one day I can buy some fancy coffee like this!” He smiled once again before exiting the car , “You will! Good night, miss.” Throughout the entire dialogue, I found myself shamelessly staring and smiling. My eyes welled up when the man left and the young woman stared at her empty coffee, glowing, because another person had talked to her. Had treated her like a friend. Like a human being.