Ups & downs

We all have our ups and downs, and sometimes it's hard to put on a cheery face. I guess those unfortunate enough to cross our paths on a miserable day assume we are always like that. When I'm having a good day, though, and I detect moodiness in somebody, I remember the time I was like that, and try and sympathise with them. In my world, this is a way of "give and take" with complete strangers, whether somebody's driving crazily, pushes in front of me in a queue, or forgets their manners at home.

I find it fascinating coming accross so many strangers in one day, crossing the path of so many lives, yet saying no words.

Today was interesting in terms of people observation. I went to a coffee shop, and there was a European couple completely silent, not talking to each other. I thought, thank goodness that's not going to be me!

Lots of other things happened today, but something that totally shocked me was an episode of road rage I witnessed at the traffic lights of a busy Dubai road. A lady got out of the driver's seat, seemed to be laughing (but was actually crying), went over and shouted something at the man in the passenger's seat, and proceeded to walk down the road, away from her 4wd.

The lights turned green, and cars overtook the stationary 4wd.

That was a really strange thing to see. I don't think anyone had stopped to help.

I imagine in larger cities, such things happen a lot and people don't think twice about it. But in our society, which is quite small in terms of population, it's quite rare to witness such a spectacle, and the culture is such that even if a car breaks down somewhere, someone will always be willing to help.

In this situation, I wonder how one could have helped, or if it was a private matter that needed to be sorted out privately, although they were in public, and their car was blocking the street.