Daily writing prompt

Describe a random encounter with a stranger that stuck out positively to you.

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I rode the Eight every morning. It was a pretty painless, brief trip (about 15-20 minutes) from downtown San Francisco to San Bruno Avenue, a predominantly Asian/Hispanic neighborhood. By the third stop (SOMA), I was usually the only non-Asian on the bus.

One afternoon on my way back to downtown from teaching, I sat next to a round, elderly, very cheerful Asian lady who seemed to speak very little English and who, out of the blue, offered me a small pin, a butterfly fashioned from blue and pink thread. At first I thought she was offering it for sale, but she made it plain it was a gift and she wanted me to pin it to my lapel. I did, and she smiled, vigorously nodded her approval then stared ahead, apparently satisfied. She got off at the next stop. I never saw her again.

It’s possible she was a grandparent to one of the children I taught, and recognized me from the school, but to this day I’m not sure why I warranted the butterfly. I still have it.