Mr. Mohite

Its early morning hours and Churchgate is yet to see its downpour of daily commuters. That's one of the reasons I always find a seat on the bus I take to work from the station. But today was a bit different, I saw people standing even though one seat was completely empty. To kill my curiosity I had to know what was wrong with that seat and so I squeezed myself ahead of others. As I reached the seat, a frail old gentleman removes his handkerchief and wipes few drops of water from the seat, which to my utter surprise was the reason for people to not sit on it. All the people standing were standing because they chose to stand, not because there was no seat.  Now let's think, was everyone so lazy that they preferred standing than wiping the water or did their ego get the best of them. The best answer came obviously from Mr Mohite who was now enjoying his window seat and I had the privilege to sit next to him. Unfazed by my reaction, Mr. Mohite simply said "koi kaam chhota nahi hai, agar hame seat chahiye to hamko hi saaf karna hoga". Life doesn't get simpler than  this, if you want the seat, then you should not shy away from wiping the water.  Mr.Mohite has been working all his adult life at the Colaba docks. My bus ride with him was short and delightful. If you ever meet him tell him I said hello.