The news of robberies, street crimes, killings, kidnappings, bomb blasts, deafening explosions and other calamities greet us every day leaving us in immense fear with feelings of insecurity, lack of trust and doubt as a result of the poor law and order situation.

However, in this gloomy environment there still are some souls who have pledged to keep the candle of hope lighted and show us the way. They are very much like us, live among us yet are more courageous and generous. Let’s try to acknowledge some of them.

“I can never forget the taxi driver who towed my ’87 model Nissan, when I was on my way from a friend’s wedding at 1:30am and ran short of CNG in the middle of a deserted road. It was scary. Sense of being vulnerable was enough to curdle the blood in my body. How patiently the taxi driver, a total stranger, helped me till I got to a CNG station and got my tank filled! I still feel obliged to that humble man; if he was not there anything could have happened to me in that darkness as my cell phone was also not working and I was all alone!” Mrs Amna narrated her story.

“I parked my car at the usual parking place in front of the gate and went to get a blood test done. On my return, I found that my car had been lifted because of some VIP movement in that area. I started arguing with the constable as that action had been taken without any prior notice. A rickshaw driver, who had been witnessing the whole scene, gently walked up to me and offered his help. He took me to the area’s police station and also helped me with the formalities needed to retrieve my car. I tried to pay him for his time but he asked for prayers instead. He was a remarkably decent person!” Mrs Sabiha Ansar shared her experience of meeting a street angel.

“During a devastating spell of rain in Karachi, I got stuck near Nagan Chowrangi. All alone with the rain pouring, I did not know what to do. As I sat in the car praying for my safety, four men approached and offered their help. But having heard so much about the strange things that happen on our roads, I thought for sure that they were thieves and intended to rob me and in a state of immense helplessness I started yelling in fear. Then one of them, a boy, came near me and asked me to cool down; looking in his eyes, I saw something that made me believe him. I got out of the car and the four men pulled the car out of the dug up edge of the under-construction road,” related Mrs Zaidi in an emotional tone.

I myself had a similar experience when my car suddenly broke down. I was stuck in the middle of Karsaz road. Loud honking from all around made me nervous when a young man approached and offered help. I quickly thought about the jewellery I was wearing and calculated the cash that I had in my bag and thanked God that I had left my new cell phone at home and was instead carrying a very inexpensive set. Worried, but having no option I accepted his offer. This great man pushed my car to the side and with the help of a wire he charged my dead battery with his own battery and started the car. Because of sheer panic, I could not even thank him properly, but he would always remain in my prayers.

Many of us must have come across such street angels at some point in our lives, but somehow we seldom talk about them. Strangely enough our memories somehow sweep away the kind gesture of these strangers and keep on recalling the bad side of people. Why can’t we try to illuminate our murky environment with a little bit of positive thinking?