Feeling So Sick Walking Was Impossible When a Man Essentially Lifted Me to the Toilets.

Back when I was my late teens, my morning travel was on an packed public transport. It remained full and invariably became without any seats by the time I stepped aboard.

One particular morning, I was feeling incredibly sick as the bus swayed around each corner. I kept telling myself to endure for a few more stops before the bus reached my destination, at which point I could sprint quickly toward the most convenient public toilet to be sick.

The bus was approaching the street towards my stop and I realised I wasn’t going to hold on. In an instant, it felt as if a veil came over me. The world became white and really quiet; similar to when one cut the sound. I thought, “I will lose consciousness”.

Thankfully, I was positioned near the front on the bus, so I managed a couple of steps toward the driver and requested that the driver to stop, telling him I needed to vomit. The driver opened the doors and I weakly exited on to the pavement.

I was resolved to not get sick in front of multiple lanes of cars, so I forced myself up and endeavored to walk to the park on the other side, where I believed I’d at least be able to secretly conceal myself near some foliage to vomit. Yet I apparently blacked out. I could feel my body but I couldn’t walk or see clearly, so I started crawling towards the park.

“You right, love?”

At that moment, I got scooped up. There was an arm around my waist and a man’s voice asked, “You right, love?” I explained to this unknown man that I had to to get to a bathroom. So he virtually helped me walk into a nearby building and put me inside the women’s restroom. He inquired if I needed him to remain with me but I declined.

After a short while, I had recovered sufficiently to sit on the toilet when from beyond the stall I heard him ask, “Do you need anything, love? Do you need anything?” I was incapable to stand up right away but did manage to thank him and following a brief period recovered the use of my feet. I got myself home and spent several days healing from what was later diagnosed as a severe stomach virus.

I never saw the stranger’s face – only his legs and a large metal toolbox he held – yet he rescued me, when I was completely helpless.

Often this world tends to make people defensive, aggressive and competitive. His act was the type of kindness that reverses that hardening of the heart. He served as evidence that people’s natural inclination is to be kind, something I love about humanity.