A month back we got off of a train late in the night. Since we were traveling with parents and our son, my husband wanted us to get home without everyone losing more sleep and booked a cab so it would arrive just as we walked out of the train station.
We were halfway out of the station when my son noticed an old lady sitting on a bench, who was probably homeless. We were carrying some food and plantains leaves that are traditionally used as plates. My son wanted to serve her food properly.
We suggested he give her the plantain leaf, food box and a bottle of water and walk quickly so we wouldn't miss our cab, as the police will not allow vehicles to wait beyond a few minutes.
But my son suspected that she was mentally ill and could not put complex things together. He asked us to leave so we wouldn't miss our cab and said he would walk home, not even knowing how far home was.
And without yielding, he went up to her talked to her, spread the leaf, served the food and kept a bottle of water open and waited till she started eating. To me this was his Satyagraha (standing by truth) and we decided to let the cab go. Not that we had a choice. And when we did walk out, our cab driver called to say he got delayed and would be arriving in couple of minutes!
