By Phu Nguyen, Huffington Post
I was sad and crying recently but that’s not what this blog post is about. I am writing to and about the stranger in the elevator who saw me sad and crying and was kind enough to ask if I was OK. His question alone made what I was upset about dissipate and also changed the course of my thoughts instead to how nice a man he must be to be brave enough to ask an upset stranger if they’re all right.
Elevator (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
Coincidentally, this very scenario happened to me days before the elevator incident, except I wasn’t the cryer then. I was on campus and walked by a girl wiping tears away. I felt badly for her. I knew nothing about this girl or why she was crying, but at the very least I hoped she’d be okay. I, however, didn’t tell her that. I walked by, as if I never saw a person there at all. I, unlike the stranger in the elevator, was not brave enough to offer her an “Are you OK?”
I’m not condemning myself or others for not asking total strangers we come by if they’re OK when we notice that they’re obviously upset. I’m just wondering when we got to a place where we’re afraid to do it. At least, maybe you’re not afraid, but I was. I was admittedly afraid to ask that girl a really easy question. I was afraid of her thinking I was nosey, and I was afraid of her feeling like she had to tell me anything about herself that she didn’t want to. I was afraid of how it would make me look if I offered her a simple kindness. I was so afraid I let my fear overcome my desire to be kind to her.
Read the full article HERE.
