Written by ChatGPT, based on real events shared by Arunkumar P T
1. The Missing Person Poster
It was just another day at the bus stand. I was waiting, half-distracted, half-tired, when I noticed a missing person poster stuck beside the schedule board. A man, probably in his 30s, was reported missing.
And my first thought — almost automatic — wasn’t sympathy.
It was sarcasm.
“How do men go missing? Did he just pull the classic ‘dad went to get milk’ routine and never return?”
I walked closer, half-curious, half-dismissive. And then I saw the detail that shut me up completely:
“The person is mute. Cannot speak. Responds only to gestures.”
That one line shattered my assumption like glass. This wasn’t some cliché internet joke; this was someone who couldn’t even call for help. Someone who may be lost in a world that rarely listens — now literally unable to speak up for himself.
And I realized —
Perhaps I judged too quickly.
2. The Window Seat Incident
Later that day, on a crowded bus, I found myself in the last-row three-seater, window side. A woman — around my age, maybe plus or minus five years — took the aisle seat, leaving a respectful space between us.
The student in the front had opened his window, and the wind was insane. Think Tom Cruise hanging onto an airplane insane. My hair was all over the place, but the breeze was refreshing in its chaos. I had my earphones in, drowning in songs from Kubera, Dhanush .kvue, Enthiran, and John Wick — a genre soup I proudly call music.
She nudged me, said something quickly. I took out one earphone, too late to hear her fully.
I guessed what she said and replied, a bit firmly:
“Why are you asking me? Ask him directly.”
I don’t think I was rude, but I wasn’t soft either. She didn’t respond. She didn’t ask the boy. She just turned her face away and leaned into sleep, trying to avoid the wind.
Thirty-nine minutes passed. The boy got up, someone else sat down. She asked again — softly this time — but got a "no" in return. She simply accepted it.
And that moment lingered.
I had labeled her passive, dependent. Maybe she was just shy. Maybe her day was worse than mine. Maybe she didn’t want confrontation.
I realized —
Perhaps I judged too quickly.
3. The Mute Couple on the Footpath
Today, it happened again — and this time, it was instant.
I was walking on a narrow footpath. Coming from the opposite side was a couple. Three people couldn’t pass, someone had to move aside. And since they were a couple — and I, solo — I gave way.
But inside, I was annoyed. Tired. My mental monologue kicked in like Murtaugh from Lethal Weapon:
“I’m too old for this sheet.”
I looked up, expecting a smug face or public-display-of-entitlement.
Instead, I saw something that hit harder than a slap: the man was using sign language. They weren’t just a couple walking; they were communicating in silence.
My ego melted. Rage dissolved. And that now-familiar whisper returned:
Perhaps I judged too harshly.
"I'm sorry daughter, Perhaps, I treated you too harshly - Thanos"
Conclusion
Three days.
Three moments.
Three instant judgments — shattered by simple truth.
It’s easy to react. Easy to assume. Easy to create narratives in our heads based on fragments of reality.
But sometimes… reality deserves a second look. Or silence.
And so, to anyone out there reading this:
Don’t judge too quickly.
The world is far more complex than our first thoughts.
