Random Acts...

As some of you may know I am working in the centre of Cape Town until the end of May, when I begin gearing up for my time with Mercy Ships. And because commuting by car into town can be a nightmare in rush-hour traffic, I have to catch the train every working day. I walk to Rosebank Station, about a ten-minute amble from my house, and catch the train (a fifteen minute train journey) from there.

Now catching the train offers plenty of opportunities for people-watching, but above that it offers a chance to see first-hand the diversity of South Africa. It is awesome to see so many different cultures all heading into work. Whether we want to admit it or not, we all have a common bond that unites us - that of building the economy of our beautiful Rainbow Nation.

Yesterday was an interesting train journey. I caught my usual train and we had a strange, rather random experience. A short man came around to each passenger and gave everybody a kiss on the cheek, perhaps to brighten up their day. I could tell he had lived a tough life. Now don't get me wrong, I'm all for being positive but cringe when this pushes the boundaries of appropriate behaviour - especially by infringing on personal space.

Now, being one who generally shies away from physical contact of that nature with a complete stranger (and being a slight hypochondriac doesn't help the situation), I must say I was not really looking forward to this. And there's nowhere you can go when the train is moving. But thankfully I had a height advantage (I was standing - no free seats) so when he came to me he chose to shake my hand and gave me a hug.

It was just so funny because of the complete randomness of it. It did put a smile on my face - especially seeing the reactions of different people to this man's actions!