Kindness is a virtue not everyone has. Too often, we tend to repay kindness only to those who are nice and kind to us but I learned that by showing kindness to those who are mean, we can indeed heap coals on their heads and win them (Prov. 25:21-22).
I went to a college that was a 12 hour bus ride from my hometown, so going home was never frequent and it was always an anticipated break from my busy student life. One night, I decided to go home, it was a warm night, perfect for a long ride back home. It was almost midnight and I was a bit sleepy and drifted off to sleep as soon as I slumped onto my seat on the bus.
My trip to lala-land was cut short when the bus stopped and more people got on the bus. Then a blurry image of a man appeared beside me and I heard him say "is this seat taken?" Honestly I didn't want any seat mate for I planned to sleep on the empty seat, but I said "no the seat is not taken". So the man sat on the next to me and then I realized I made a big mistake! My seat mate talked a lot even I told him I was really sleepy, he still kept on talking and asking me questions which I answered with irritation, sarcasm and a dash of insult.
Hours passed and it was almost dawn when our bus stopped in the middle of nowhere. There was a commotion and I noticed the passengers where leaving the bus with their luggage. Confused, I went out of the bus to see what was happening. Well, our bus was stuck in a kilometer stretch of knee-high mud pile. The bus could not go any further and the only way to get out was to walk and brave the mud to the other bus waiting few kilometers away.
I tried to lift my luggage but it was too heavy. Jut then, someone offered to carry my luggage - it was my seatmate. Even though I was mean to him earlier, he was still kind enough to help me carry my luggage. With shame and gratitude in my heart, I let him carry my stuff and I carried his little back pack and together we walked through the mud pile - this time I was wide awake and was happy to talk.
I went to a college that was a 12 hour bus ride from my hometown, so going home was never frequent and it was always an anticipated break from my busy student life. One night, I decided to go home, it was a warm night, perfect for a long ride back home. It was almost midnight and I was a bit sleepy and drifted off to sleep as soon as I slumped onto my seat on the bus.
My trip to lala-land was cut short when the bus stopped and more people got on the bus. Then a blurry image of a man appeared beside me and I heard him say "is this seat taken?" Honestly I didn't want any seat mate for I planned to sleep on the empty seat, but I said "no the seat is not taken". So the man sat on the next to me and then I realized I made a big mistake! My seat mate talked a lot even I told him I was really sleepy, he still kept on talking and asking me questions which I answered with irritation, sarcasm and a dash of insult.
Hours passed and it was almost dawn when our bus stopped in the middle of nowhere. There was a commotion and I noticed the passengers where leaving the bus with their luggage. Confused, I went out of the bus to see what was happening. Well, our bus was stuck in a kilometer stretch of knee-high mud pile. The bus could not go any further and the only way to get out was to walk and brave the mud to the other bus waiting few kilometers away.
I tried to lift my luggage but it was too heavy. Jut then, someone offered to carry my luggage - it was my seatmate. Even though I was mean to him earlier, he was still kind enough to help me carry my luggage. With shame and gratitude in my heart, I let him carry my stuff and I carried his little back pack and together we walked through the mud pile - this time I was wide awake and was happy to talk.
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