[2022-11-29] Recognizing opportunity
In the summer of 1986, I took the same bus at the same time every morning to go to my summer job in downtown Ottawa. Almost every day, I had the same bus driver, a rather sullen man.
I don't know why, but I made it my mission to turn his scowl into a smile. Every morning, I sat or stood at the front of the bus so that I could chat with him. Slowly—over days and weeks—our conversation broadened beyond "How are you this morning?" to more in-depth discussions. He was actually quite talkative, and not nearly as negative as his countenance suggested him to be. I spent a lot of time just listening to him, interjecting with positive responses and offering comparable stories from my life.
Through our many conversations, I learned that he liked science fiction. One day, he gave me a copy of a book he had enjoyed reading. I was touched by this gesture, which I took as his wanting to give me something in exchange for what I had given him—a smile, an attentive ear, a recognition of him as a person.
I was helped in my mission by the fact that circumstances brought me together with this stranger every day for several weeks, perhaps until his schedule changed or the summer ended and I returned to university. I didn't have to make any special effort to see him beyond getting myself on the same bus each morning.
This experience taught me that, with time, patience and willingness, I could reach a person in ways that would not be possible through a brief, chance encounter. I simply needed to recognize the opportunity—to see the door and walk through it.
