I’m sitting at the front of the bus, eating an apple on my way to work. I begin to notice the driver is honking his horn for no reason. We are in slow moving traffic and he’s honking his horn. We are at the stop light, the light turns green and the cars begin to move. He mumbles something at the other drivers and honks the horn. There is no logic to the constant noise. It’s irrational and irritating.
“It’s something he does everyday and has become an unconscious behavior,” I thought. “And continuous honking is part of the driving experience in China, similar to Iran’s roads. It’s just a senseless habit.” I concluded.
I look around the moving traffic, the trees, the clouds, and the blue sky that is rare to see these days. I begin to feel a sense of spaciousness in my heart. I thought, “Sometimes I feel like there’s not enough room to include everyone in my heart. The space is tight and only a limited amount of people can belong, under certain conditions. Many people go through life with a cramped heart. I don’t want to be like that.” I felt my heart open wide and for a moment I knew no limits. Everything belongs. And as we were gliding with the flow of traffic, the driver blows a series of honks, and I thought of jumping him.
I arrive to my stop, step off the bus and the day rolls on.