As I prepare for my next trip abroad, I’m reminded of an encounter I had on my last trip; I somehow managed to get onto the right train in Japan (1 of 4 that I had to take) and realized I would only have 5 minutes between when I would arrive at the next terminal and when my next train would depart, and I still had to buy the ticket too. So I asked the man sitting next to me (who only spoke broken English) if he could help me get to the next train. When we pulled into the terminal he immediately took off running, with me in tow, towards the ticket counter and had me on my new train with plenty of time to spare. I said thank you as many times as I could but realized that he had just gone way out of his way for a virtual stranger, I couldn’t really repay him with just a thank you...I had sat next to this man for about an hour and learned a lot about him; his family, where he grew up, his career, aspirations, and his country. After that, I felt like I had known him for a while, almost like family. Throughout his life he had not had the same opportunities I have had already, but his culture raised him to be kind to all, and that’s what he was doing. Even someone he knew he would never see again. I gained tremendous respect for that country and their society from that man. Moments like that are the reason I travel. So I will say it again...Thank you Akira!
Posted on: Mon, 30 Sep 2013 02:56:14 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015