Recently whilst travelling on the J line during the evening rush hour on a Friday, a pregnant lady got on, and instead of people doing the usual looking down at the floor because there is something very interesting to stare at on a tube carriage floor or newspapers raising higher and higher, a young lad offered his seat to her.
Then at the next stop which was an even busier station, another pregnant lady no.2 got on, to be honest, she looked like she was ready to give birth given the size of her bump, this time people pretended that they didn’t see her, so she moved over to the area where you can lean on, I made eye contact with her and asked her if she wanted my seat, people looked at her and then looked at me, she looked like she wanted to hug me, she came over, touched my arm saying ‘thank you very much’ as she sat down, and this was one female offering another her seat.
At the next stop, a family came on, they looked like they were tourists and the daughter appeared to want to sit down just for the fun of it, and so the chap sitting opposite me, offered his seat to her and she sat down with her mother. What did amaze me was why he didn’t offer his seat to the pregnant lady to which my friend who was travelling with me said (in his defence) ‘Perhaps he didn’t see her’.
When the pregnant lady no.2 got off at her stop, she again thanked me. Not too sure what happened that day as another pregnant lady no.3 had got on at some stage, but I was too busy reading ES magazine to have noticed her, and anyway, I was still standing/leaning in that area where you can, pregnant lady no.3 looked at us like we were mad.
I don’t think I have ever had such a gracious pregnant lady (no.2) thank me just for offering her my seat.
I know that sometimes there are people who take for granted that you should offer them your seat for no particular reason, but that day I felt good that someone appreciated something as small as offering a seat to them.
On a separate occasion, I found myself rushing to catch the tube as I was late for an appointment, I needed to top up my oyster card, and of course, it would have to be when everyone else uses the ticket machines (never when no one is using it), I patiently queue up, whilst willing the person in front of me (in my head) to hurry up. This was a guy probably in his early 20s with another friend, they walk away from the ticket machine and I noticed the screen says your oyster card could not be updated. Ignoring the message, I then use the machine for my oyster card and the machine makes a funny noise and a crisp £10 note spits back out of the machine, I look at the money, I turn around and see the two guys walking to the ticket barriers, I’m thinking what do I do, run after them and give them the money back or ignore it and just do what I need to do.
I take the £10 note and run after the guys before they walk through the ticket barrier, I probably startled the guy as I touched his arm and said ‘Excuse me, did you just put money on your card?’, he’s a bit cautious and looks at me as if I am mad, and says ‘Yes’, I wave the £10 note in his face and say ‘It didn’t work’ and then run back to the ticket machine, while he said ‘oh thank you’ as they walk back to the ticket machine, he says thank you again and I say that’s ok.
In this day and age, how many would have done that? How many would have just taken the £10 note with the thought ‘finders keepers, losers weepers’……I’m just saying.
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