SIT SIT....STORIES IN TRANSIT....STAND IN TRUTH

Welcome to another episode of Stories In Transit

I usually tell stories from my interstate travels but this time I’ll be telling from inside town errands.

Since I moved to this city, I have been privileged to take buses and cabs and tricycles to my different destinations as opposed to when I used to be either driven around or drive around by myself. It’s not been an all-jolly ride but I’m paying my dues humbly.

Unto today’s gist;

I boarded a bus from point A to B which has a fixed cost of ₦X. As the journey proceeded, the driver had to pick people along the road going towards our direction. One thing he kept hammering on, whenever he picked a passenger was the price (₦X). As much as I mind my business a lot, my ears are always picking up both useful and useless information from my environment. That is how I heard him tell a pair of girls that joined in our journey, the price. What I don’t know is, if they heard or not.

So fast forward to when the girls were close to alighting, they paid their fare and asked for change (balance) and the volunteer conductor gave them change which didn’t tally with their self-assumed fare. That’s when the heated argument ensued. The driver kept reiterating his point of mentioning the fare prior to their entry into the bus while the girls kept insisting they never heard him and their assumed fare (₦X –₦ 50) was what they usually paid. This back and forth continued for close to five minutes before I decide to unmind my business and not necessarily salvage the driver but stand for the truth because everyone kept quiet watching the drama between the driver and passengers including the volunteer conductor.

So I spoke up. I said in a loud almost intimidating and a little bit irritated voice.

“Babes, the driver actually said the fare is ₦X o…I heard him”

The girls suddenly went quiet. Other passengers in the bus then began to speak up.

“it’s true o, it’s true….i heard him say ₦X too ”, the other passengers responded simultaneously

That’s how the argument ended. The girls were wise enough to plead with the driver to collect the fare they paid because they didn’t have enough to take them back home.

End of wahala

Troublesome me, went ahead to scold the volunteer conductor and other passengers for not speaking the truth and watching the driver suffer alone. And of course the driver thanked me profusely for the support. Even though he didn’t reduce or return my fare.

This brings us to the nugget for today.

Always stand for the truth regardless of your knowledge of the person you will be helping or what’s in it for you to gain.

Do you know why?

One day, you will find yourself in a similar situation and it might be a stranger’s word of truth that would save you.

If you keep minding your business when you have the ability to speak up, one day there will be nobody to speak for you because they are all dead or imprisoned.

What do we have to say about the ones that knew the truth and kept quiet?

for something as little as affirming what the driver had earlier said....they weren't even required to appear before the supreme court or take an oath. 

They are the reason armed robbers, swindlers, sex offenders, pick-pockets, etc, are running loose around town. They are the reason the world keeps getting worse. They close their eyes and act like they are blind. One day, when they open their eyes, they will find nobody left.

Did I tell you how a keke driver helped me recover my phone stolen by a pick-pocket?

Story for another day…..

Let’s do better. Always speak the truth. Always stand for the truth.

Love, Deedee

XOXO