Dreams

Passenger Jeep

"I love the Lord,
He is filled with compassion.
He turned to me on the day that I called.
From the snares of the dark,
O Lord, save my life.
Be my strength!"

The song was still ringing in Stella's ears as she boarded the passenger jeep, a form of public transport in the area. She used to take a joy ride on a jeep when she had nothing better to do. It took more or less an hour to circle the city: that is, from her point of departure until it returns to the same place. Well, it depends upon how many times the driver stops to wait for passengers, of course!

She did this to observe people, see them as they go about their daily activities, and listen to the conversations they openly do in public transport. Stella has learned a lot through these joy rides around the city. Topics of conversations ranged from love, courtship, quarrels, politics, people's rants in general, child rearing, and many more. How interesting! She silently listened and learned from different people who'd board the jeep. It was education as cheap as her 8 peso fare.

On one of those joy rides, she took the seat at the back of the jeep driver. She deliberately took the backseat because she knew she would be made to take people's fares and hand them over to the driver and then she will be made to return the change back to the passenger. Then Stella could watch people's faces as she smiled at them and observed many different reactions. She made a mental record of those who said thank you and those who did not: simple indicators of good manners and right conduct such as the use of these little magic words of courtesy.

On that particular day, she took the same back seat. Before she could even sit down the driver had already made the vehicle run at full speed. Good enough she was used to this. Her right hand as always was securely clamped to the hand rail at the ceiling. As she slumped forcefully down and dropped at her favorite backseat, her eyes alertly scanned the jeep. Then her eyes fell on the lady seated just across her seat. The lady who was shabbily dressed was smiling with that weird smile you could not ignore. It was then, that Stella realized that the lady was out of her mind. Instantly, Stella smelled the foul odor of someone who has not taken a bath for ages. What a series of fortunate or unfortunate events: From the DepEd announcement of K-12, to the Mass she attended, to this jeepney ride, and now this lunatic in front of her. Will there be many College Professors who will end up this way? She almost laughed out loud.

Nothing happened by chance, she told herself, mortified. So, she bore the smell without covering her nose. Everytime a passenger alighted, Stella managed to move away. Well, there was no law saying that such persons be banned from public transport. From the seat where she was, Stella continued to observe the lady. She got to enjoy the fast changing moods of Luna. Her mood changed so quickly from a serious almost angry face, to a more cheerful and then that weird smile. Then it went on in the same pattern. My Lord, was she predictable? We can never tell!

What if she would suddenly freak out? Stella decided to get off before anything violent could happen. Most of the time in Stella's experience, jeepney rides had been educational. She would listen to people riding together: mothers talking to their children after fetching them from school, surprise meetings among long time acquaintances and even chance reunions of the best of friends. At other times, she would just enjoy watching people go about their daily activities. It was so refreshing for her.

But that day was one of a kind. As she moved farther away still observing that lunatic, the passenger jeep stopped at one crossing. It was red light. Then the man seated at the farthest end of the jeep forcibly grabbed Stella's gold necklace, got off the jeep and crossed the street in a flash.

"Hey, come back here! Give me back my necklace!" Stella called out to the snatcher. She jumped out of the jeep and ran as fast as she could. The guy was out of sight as she tried to follow him turn towards a corner. He was gone!

"My, oh my! Why did I run after him?" Stella asked herself. She was out breath as she halted. She was wearing high heels and there she was running like an athlete in an Olympic Game. Then she heard the heavy thumping of her heart. It was like the revolution of two motorcycles getting ready for a drag race. Where did she get that adrenaline rush? Whoa! She had never been snatched before! She was surprised with the almost super human strength she exhibited. What if she caught that snatcher? Would she give him a flying kick of sorts?  Why are there no police officers around? Oh, my Lord!