That old guy at the bus station who handed me a beat-up paperback

I was waiting for a Greyhound in Des Moines around 2 AM, totally dead inside after my shift. This older dude sat next to me, saw me staring at nothing, and just put a copy of The Old Man and the Sea in my lap without saying a word. He just nodded and walked off to catch his bus. I read it in one go during the ride home and it hit me different... that whole thing about not giving up even when the fight is pointless. Has a random stranger ever handed you a book at just the right time?

2 comments

2 Comments

drew_grant521d ago

Yeah that hit me in a gut feeling kind of way. Some people just have this sixth sense for when you're running on empty and need something real. I had a similar thing happen with a copy of Man's Search for Meaning left on a park bench with a sticky note that just said "keep going." That book wrecked me in all the right ways. There's something about a stranger knowing you're struggling without you saying a word. It makes the whole thing feel less lonely somehow.

leo6031d ago

Gonna disagree a little here @drew_grant52. That kind of "perfect moment" stuff always feels a bit staged to me, like someone's trying too hard to be deep. Never had a stranger leave me a book with a note, and honestly I'd probably just think it was a prank or something. The whole "stranger knows you're struggling" thing sounds nice in theory but in real life most people are too wrapped up in their own problems to notice anyone else's, lol.