Undercover Angel

I am convinced that there is still lots of good in the world. :)

On my way to work yesterday morning, I was greeted by a very long line of vehicles on the highway in front of the entrance to our condominium village. It was quite a surprise because traffic doesn't get that heavy at Lawton Avenue that time of the morning. I have no idea what was causing the temporary parking lot on the streets. I left our unit later than usual, around 7:10 a.m., which is the latest I had to be out if I wanted to be at work at least 15 minutes before 8:00 unharrassed by the tedious commute. Nevertheless, it wasn't the time that's the problem. Something was up. I hoisted my bag up my shoulder and looked at my watch.

There was simply no way I was going to risk riding a jeep to Gate 3 and do my usual Chino Roces ave. - Pasay Road route. I crossed the pedestrian lane to the other side of the street. I made up my mind to ride a cab going through Global City, McKinley Parkway, across EDSA to Park Square 1 and then Pasay Road to the center. The only problem was, there weren't too many taxis passing by. They were all probably stranded in the heavy traffic at the intersections.

A cab went by but a Malaysian man who had been waiting longer than I have hailed it first. The next one said he can't go to Makati because of the coding (the last digit on the plate number of his car was prohibited to be used in Makati). A third taxi came but it stopped in front of the lady standing a few steps from me. I watched as she opened the back door and then she looked at me before she got in and asked, "Saan ka papunta?" ("Where are you headed?") "Pasay Road," I replied.

She smiled and told me she was headed for Salcedo Village in Makati and offered me to ride with her in the taxi. I asked her if she was sure it wasn't out of her way. She just smiled and said, "Malapit lang naman yun." ("The place is near anyway"). What a blessing!

As the car pulled away from the curb, the lady and I chatted. I found out that she lived in the same village I do albeit in a different building, Iligan. She's a pre-school teacher at Toddlers Unlimited and she was familiar with the therapy center where I work. Minutes passed by and soon we were in Pasay Road.

I asked her how much I needed to pay and she said, "Okay lang, 'wag na." (It's okay, you don't have to pay.") The taxi stopped by the 7-11 store on the corner of Pasay Road and Edades St. where I got off. I thanked the lady twice before I closed the door after I got out. I watched the cab speed away before I crossed the street heading towards the center.

Wow. A free taxi ride with a kind and friendly lady on a Friday morning. That doesn't happen very often. In fact, it was a rare experience. That was definitely God's work telling me that among us are angels in disguise. :)