Have you ever experienced sitting next to someone inside a jeepney, who has got her mouth close to your ear while she is talking loudly to another party on her phone? I hope not. How about people who refuse to use earphones while they listen to their favorite shows, playing at full volume, oblivious to the cramped cabin of a jeepney? For many of everyday commuters, born to inherit the scourge of public transport, these are but two samples of a torturous everyday reality.
To add, because we generally are a timid and decent people, a direct confrontation would be deemed not worth it, so that the end result of this would usually just be … chill. As the song goes, Que sera sera. What will be, will be.
Up till now, I am still quite confused. A rainbow of emotions ranging from I can’t believe this guy, to how-dare-you, and let-it-go just breathe deeply, all these alternately run through my head. Others must have read these on my face clear as day, because I often notice the sympathetic stares of some passengers. It’s almost like being taken out by the friendly neighborhood bully and all the bystanders could do was, stand and watch. But really now, already-resigned to keeping a tight rein on my feelings, I sulkily look away, as in this case, the woman’s voice, like an invasive send-to-all e-mail, banshees its way into my head.
“There are graver things that await in the horizon and we shouldn’t become too de-sensitized enough, we’ll turn our heads on them too. Forget the jeepneys, how about obnoxious people in high places. Shall we then look away?”
I have just come to realize that I’ve written about this so many times, a long time ago, but so what? Nothing has changed, people. Perhaps I should be just like the young gens of today who sport humongous headphones and dark Sunnies to protest this mild anarchy going on and at the same time, also to enjoy their own version of a peaceful ride.
Alas for others like me, the only option is plain-old coping even though it’s not exactly a solution to the problem. Should every poor commuter be held hostage to the shotgun blast, one-way ranting of other fellow passengers? If by chance, someone goes out of their way and confronted these obnoxious members of the specie, I’ll just nod approvingly and give them the thumbs up or the Korean hand sign for heart. In short, my fighting days are over. That’s as far as my audience participation will go.
Of course I know that what we are is molded largely by culture: how we were raised, where we hail from, influences of school, religion and people we’ve interacted with, etcetera. In this context, what particular page of that voluminous tome of experience is the little briefer on empathy?
It may all seem funny when one hears about these situations happening to other people, but the fact that it happens, on a day-to-day at that, tells us that noisy passengers are one thing. There are graver things that await in the horizon and we shouldn’t become too de-sensitized enough, we’ll turn our heads on them too. Forget the jeepneys, how about obnoxious people in high places. Shall we then look away?
