The Stranger.

It's not always the people we have in our lives that make the biggest impacts on our lives. Sometimes, it is the people we don't actually have in our lives who do it. And these aren't even the people we used to know, these are not even the casual acquaintances we make out of obligations.

Hello there, I am the Earthian.

I'm talking about strangers. Strangers who go out of their ways to make other people's days. And it doesn't have to be a great big deal of a deed. A simple morning wish while strolling on the road would suffice. 

Every morning, at about seven, I leave my home for college. As I walk to my bus-stop, I see a lot people. Milkmen, mini food-stall owners, domestic workers, small shopkeepers, other students who have early buses to catch, just to name a few of them. None of these people carry a smile on their faces. All of them, including me, are in a hurry, to get something done, to get to some place, to not disappoint their customers or their bosses. However, amongst a slurry of these people, there comes another person, with a glowing face. His face is wrinkled, so are his old hands. His hair, whatever he has left are all platinum blonde (if that's we're calling grey hair these days) and he carries a stick around to help himself a walk. I have never had an idea of who he was, nor do I remember ever being acquainted with him. Anyway, as I rush towards my bus-stop, I notice him looking at me. And this happens every single day. Just as I walk past him, he calls me out (not by name but with a very subtle hand gesture- kind of like a salute) and wishes me a great day. He doesn't have to do that. But he does. He turns my serious face into a smiling one in an instant (I'm not sure how long that smile actually lasts on my face but nevertheless, you see my point). He doesn't stop with me. He does it to other people too. Some find him to be weird and ignore him, others return the favour he gave did them. And this maybe me exaggerating but in all honesty, he doesn't have anything to lose by making people smile. He gains as he gives and he knows this. He understands we don't get poor by giving and he understands wealth doesn't always necessarily mean money. Gestures matter too.

Lots of love, peace.