i am afraid of walking around madison at night alone as a female. i do believe this is not an irrational fear, and actually that it is quite good that i have this fear. i could get into a lot of trouble if i didn't... or at least i believe i would. tonight, i left my volunteer organization meeting, and realized it was late, dark, and the bus was not coming for another 30 minutes. another female was also in the same predicament, so we decided, after figuring out that we kind of live in the same place, that we'd just walk together. we spent the next 20 minutes walking and talking, learning many things about each other. it was not awkward, it was not silent, it was fun and enjoyable. my apartment was before hers, but i offered to walk her there. she kindly turned my down, but she was glad i had offered.
i experienced something tonight. something i'm not sure i would have experienced at most places around the world- a general sense of kindness. would most people, complete strangers, offer to walk home with you at night. this girl was not my same race, ethnicity. i had never talked with her before. who's to say that walking with this female was any better than walking home alone. but it was much better. i made a new friend, learned another person's story (or as much as you can learn in 20 minutes) and instilled in me the goodness of humankind. if i see this girl around campus, we will have something in common, a bond not many people have.
waiting for the bus 30 minutes would not have been terrible, but neither was this, in fact, it was great.
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