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Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Heartening

I was about to get off the footpath but stopped because a heavily burdened Lambani woman was about to come in my way. After she passed, my path was blocked, again, by a small boy being led by the hand by a girl, behind the woman.

The urchin was being led by the hand by a 'modern girl' complete with faded denims, trainer shoes, a t-shirt covered by a denim jacket, complete with a back-pack like bag. The boy had a bedraggled teddy bear and a few other toys which had 'discarded' written all over them - invisibly but unmistakably. I wondered - since when did Lambani girls get this modern?

Finally I got off the foot path, crossed the road and stood on the other footpath waiting for my bus. When I looked across, the girl was walking back, having seen to it that the urchin was safe on the other side of the crossroads. On the distant footpath, a Lambani group was in the process of making their temporary home.

She stood in the bus stand as if she does this kind of thing every day . Perhaps she does. She caught the next bus that came.

Heartening. Heart warming.

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