The Hardworking Indian

So many people,  actually mostly locals, talk about people being lazy. Another major complaint is related to the Auto Rikshaw drivers.

Auto Rikshaw drivers seems to me the most hardworking people.  Actually all people in the lower end of the pay range struggle and work so hard. They cannot afford being lazy basically.

I don't know why, but probably because they're so looked down upon and blamed for so much; auto drivers have some kind of special place in my heart.  Yesterday I took a long ride in an auto and after the initial bargaining, emotional outrage that I didn't want to pay a ridiculous sum and "madam, come let's go see some shops"...we started talking, like really talking to each other.  Two human beings, not I'm a white foreign woman and he's an Indian auto driver.

Behind his mask was a thinking human being.  He explained about his life and. ...my only thought was wow..that's a hard working person. I tried to put myself in his shoes. Work day and night.  Sleep in your auto.  Constantly inhaling the pollution from traffic (which really is bad. If you end up behind a blue bus at a traffic light, it burns in your throat. I wash myself after a day out and the sink turns black.) Eating food from a trolley by the road etc. Difficult.

At the end of the ride he said - This was a really nice talk. I thought the same.  Both meant it.

I will talk more about the hardworking Indian later. I have studied them everywhere and there are many more stories to tell.