A little bit of appreciation

There was this lady on the train the other day. A perfectly good lady. A lady who had a solution to every problem. A lady who had advice for everyone.

"That fan is not working. Do you want a pencil so you can start it. If you press it with a pencil, it starts."

"If you want to start the fan, do it yourself."

"I don't want the fan. I was just telling you how to do it."

"Are you going to eat that orange on the train? I have a polythene bag in which you can dump the peel."

"You mustn't discuss financial details, or make holiday plans in public places. It can be very dangerous". This was to a college going girl who was talking to a friend on the mobile, and who only looked irritated at being disturbed.

She wasn't nasty. Only pushy. Nobody really likes having someone tell them what to do, and yet she just didn't get it.

There was one way and one way alone to stop her. "That's a really beautiful saree you are wearing. You look positively radiant in it", I said. The first part was true, the second was stretching the truth just a little bit.

She beamed. Her smile transformed her face into something really beautiful. And she shut up after that.

A little bit of appreciation is all anyone really wants.