15 Strangers Who Made Ordinary Days Impossible To Forget
Some encounters stay in your mind long after they happen — whether they made you smile, cry, or question humanity a little. Sometimes, it’s a kind word from a stranger that lifts your day; other times, it’s an awkward or hurtful moment you’ll never forget. These stories prove that even the briefest interactions can leave a mark that lasts for years.
When I was in college, I used to take the same bus every morning. One day, an elderly man sat next to me and noticed the textbook I was reading — something about philosophy. He smiled and said, “Ah, you’re looking for answers.” I laughed and said, “Aren’t we all?” He nodded and replied, “The secret is not in finding answers, but in asking better questions.” Then he got off at the next stop. I never saw him again, but that sentence changed the way I see life.
I was working to pay my way through university when a woman approached me at my job (I had a job gathering carts for a supermarket). I was pushing a line of carts into the store when the woman and her son walked up to me. She then pointed at me and said, “This is why we stay in school.” To this day, I still get angry because of that obscene comment.
