NOV 19, 11 .. A FREE PASS ON A LOCAL BUS
And today’s.. SIXTY FOUR THOUSAND DOLLAR QUESTION IS ..
HOW OFTEN .. IN THIS LIFETIME .. DO YOU GET A FREE PASS LIKE I JUST GOT ..
This is just a Rhetorical Question.. no reply needed nor expected..
In For What It’s Worth.. 71.. November 17th.. 2011.. I just wrote of my recent bus trip(s) south from Arambol Beach to Margao here in Goa in India..
The trip was all on local buses ..
In India.. on a local bus .. people are usually standing.. and pretty much jammed together in the aisle ..
A bus conductor has to weave and thread his way through this crowd in order to collect the bus fare from each passenger .. the bus conductor is carrying an over-the-shoulder leather bag with change..
On the leg from Mapusa ( MAP of the USA) south to Panjim.. the fare was eleven (11Rs) India Rupees ..
So passengers usually will hand the conductor a ten rupee note with a one rupee coin.. or a twenty rupee note ..
To hand the poor conductor a note larger than twenty rupees takes some considerable nerve .. it forces this poor man to dig and to make change all the while the bus is swerving and stopping and starting ..
In FWIW .. 70 and 71 .. I wrote of my being short on money .. and the primary purpose of my trip south was to get money from an ATM in Margao ..
Part of my money problem was I had little or no change ..
So here the conductor is.. facing me.. with his hand extended for the eleven (11Rs) rupee bus fare ..
Some of these men are sort of gruff.. NOT this man.. he was smiling and he was pleasant..
With an absolutely straight face.. with a ‘shrug’ of my shoulders and the beginning of a shy grin.. BEGGING UNDERSTANDING from this poor human being..
I handed this poor man.. for change..to pay eleven rupees (11Rs) .. a (hold on now) .. I gave this humble.. poor.. God Fearing man.. a..
FIVE HUNDRED (500 Rs) RUPEE BILL ..
Lord he looked down at me with a look of .. YOU MUST BE KIDDING BABA .. you expect me to change a FIVE HUNDRED RUPEE BILL FOR AN ELEVEN RUPEE FARE ..
I would not have been surprised if he had just ordered me off his bus..
Well .. he thought about this for a micro-second.. and left me to take care of business.. in about ten minutes.. back he came..
With grace and with dignity.. he slowly peeled off four (4) one hundred rupee notes.. a fifty rupee note.. and four ten rupee notes .. and practically begged me saying .. “Have you a one rupee coin Baba?” ..
Well I did.. and I smiled.. took his hand.. shook his hand.. and gave him the one rupee coin that I did HAVE.. he smiled.. and went on his way ..
HOW MANY FREE PASSES LIKE THIS DO I HAVE COMING TO ME.. in this lifetime .. in India.. he was just so sweet.. and so calm..
yep.. here it comes.. THIS is exactly what it is that I SO LOVE about India..
I would write this conclusion even if he had thrown me off his bus.. which he had the right to do so..
over and out with much LOVE .. cap..