A Chance Encounter with a Kind Stranger

I thought that this incident that happened to my friend might be worth sharing. The rainy season has begun here in Tokyo, and the days can be rather dreary. Back home, in Manila, I heard that the rains have also begun. I hope that this story can put a smile to someone’s face.

My friend got stuck in Osaka and missed the last shinkansen home, so I was worried after her last phone call got cut off, since she had no place to stay, or even a phone or wi-fi connection to make further contact with. She asked me for help, but didn’t have enough time, so I told her to go to the nearest police station (to ask for help) or Internet cafe (so that I could send her a link to a capsule hotel – she wanted to try staying in one, anyway).

I wondered what happened to her after not hearing for her for an hour or so, only to receive a message from her with some good news. She asked a stranger where the nearest police station was, and struggled to explain her situation. Despite looking like he couldn’t afford to miss his train, he was so worried that he wouldn’t leave her alone, and booked her a hotel room (not just at any hotel, but at an upscale one) – and even paid for it! He was also very concerned that she didn’t have enough money (luckily, she did) and that she didn’t know how to go back to Tokyo, and felt assured to see that she had a Japan Rail Pass. My friend wanted to get his contact details to repay him, but he refused and just said to make sure she could get back safely to Tokyo the next day. I wonder if this post will ever reach him – I doubt it will (perhaps I should translate this into Japanese, but I’m not too confident in my skills) – but if it does, I’m sure my friend would like him to know how grateful she is for his magnanimity.

What a lovely thing it is, to experience a random act of kindness from a stranger.

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