The small actions of a Japanese woman leave a big impression

Text: Adele BOUTIER (France)

Many people despair over the bad manners of today's young Japanese women, especially when they do their make-up on trains and sit with their feet on the chair in restaurants. But on the other hand, there are some nice women, too.

One morning, I queued in front of an automatic machine at my local train station to buy a commuter ticket. There were four people in front of me. The person at the front was an old man trying to buy a new commuter ticket. He was trying to enter his name and date of birth, but he had to start again from the beginning as he did not know how to operate the machine properly. The woman behind him was getting irritated, glanced at her watch and after a while she left the line. The man behind her also left with an angry look on his face.

My train was due to arrive soon and I knew that if I missed it, I would be late for work. I also became irritated. The old man was trying to start again, shaking his head. The young woman in front of me stepped beside the man and asked "May I help you?" The man replied "Please!" She then proceeded to offer step-by-step instructions to follow.

After the old man had successfully received his new ticket, he said "Thank you. Thank you" to her and bowed repeatedly. She smiled back at him with a gentle look on her face. By seeing her sincere actions, I become ashamed. I was late for work, but it was a fresh morning.

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