BRTs run on Sundays and so I took a BRT home from church yesterday. I figured the queue wouldn’t be long and I could enjoy some nice ‘Ambode air conditioning’ as I returned to my place of residence. I guess Ifigured wrongly, along with a bunch of other people. Apparently, too many of us had figured the same thing and now there was this long queue of people waiting to board the bus.
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Things would have been all nice and dandy if some people were not trying to jump the queue whenever a bus would stop or protest that people that were on the ‘standing queue’ (A line for those who can’t join the main line and won’t mind standing) should not be allowed on the bus. The sun was hot, the people were loud and I wasn’t there for it.
The drama with the BRT was subsiding when a Lag Bus came out of nowhere with its own drama. I have no idea what happened on this bus but the outcome was all but pretty. A man was dragged out of the bus as a flock of people proceeded to gang up against the man, ready to take him out.
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Like I said, I have no idea what the man did but I was willing to bet my N5o Naira that it couldn’t be more than an issue pertaining to change or money. All I could think about was the fact that it was Sunday, the day of rest, but these people couldn’t be bothered.
There a lot of angry people in Nigeria and I think we can all agree that they have many reasons to be angry. The problem with angry people, however, is that they are always on the edge; always on the verge of self-destruction or mutual destruction. Whichever it is, they are always too close to tipping point and this is a dangerous thing.
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Its a toxic environment to be in. Its an unhealthy one for anyone to raise children in, work in or even exist in, but yet, this is the environment in which we find ourselves.
What’s the way out?
Choosing not to be toxic. Choosing kindness. Choosing to let go of avoidable drama. A lot of people transfer their aggression from their personal lives to people jumping queues at the BRT bus stop. It’s may seem normal to some but you don’ have to be one of them.
In an environment that’s as hard as ours, you would be best to try and be the light when you can. Be that breath of fresh air in a place where arguments and fights are only one stop away.
From The Lagos Side,
Adeoluwa