This weekend I was driving in SF, I had gone up to get some books from a guy off of craigslist and I was turning onto Oak St to head back to the freeway home. I’m waiting at the red light to turn left, and there was a car that was going down oak st that had tried to turn into a gas station, and hit a bicyclist. I didn’t see the accident, but it looked just like that, an accident. There was a young couple in the car, a beat up Toyota, and the lady on the bike was dressed in expensive clothing, riding a custom bike. Two things happened then, and both of them stuck out at me. The first one was that another car, heading down Oak street had the gall to lay on the horn because the Toyota was blocking the traffic lane. Understand the situation, the bike is still wedged under the front bumper, and the bicyclist is still lying on the ground, and this asshole has the nerve to be upset that someone is holding up traffic. I was appalled. The couple climbs out of their car, slowly, since they can’t see if the door will hit the bicycle or not, and the driver, a man in his late 20’s rushes over to help the woman off the ground, and immediately gives her a hug. An immediate display of love and concern for a person. That struck me and stuck in my mind very very clearly. The man’s companion was standing right next to them, talking and making sure the cyclist had no major injuries. I read Metagrrrl frequently and she often talks about how much she enjoys living in the Castro. Her writings about people she encounters in her daily routines often convey the same feeling to me that this encounter did. That people are not all jerks. That there are some people in the world who still understand that love is an acceptable way to deal with people on a regular basis. There’s a platform I’d like to see on a presidential ballot – to treat others with mercy, love, and kindness.

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