Riding a motorcycle, especially a small scooter, gives one a unique perspective while waiting at a stoplight. While many Singaporeans sit in their quiet, air-conditioned rides, scooter riders are out in the heat and humidity. In the former, individuals are in isolated rooms on wheels, their glass and steel walls protecting them the elements. On a scooter you are up close to everything! You feel the heat pouring off the BMWs and Mercs (for some reason these two brands run the hottest). You get to observe occupants, even the ones hiding behind darkened windows, up close and personal. Dirty wheels, messy cars, unusual situations while driving; at a long light, you see everything as you wind your way from the back to the front.
Experience reminds me that you have no idea how anyone in any car is going to act when the light turns green. It would be easy to predict that the Ferrari and Maserati are going to let loose; only not everyone does. It would be simple to suggest that all taxi drivers are careless when it comes to paying attention to those on motorcycles. Most are very considerate, except a ruthless minority driving the red-colored cars! Even the assumptions about bus drivers would be wrong. I have found Singapore bus drivers to be some of the most considerate drivers when it comes to bikes. I suspect it is because many ride themselves.
As I wake up to a new day, I realize that I have yet to find a consistent correlation between what one drives and how one reacts to a green light. Everyone is what s/he is, but looking at the individual, judging by the car, while interesting is rarely a truth-indicator. As someone close to them at a light, it is important to accept each as s/he is, presuming the best, prepared for the worst. The reaction is how I see God looking at me. David’s words capture God’s response to my choices; “You take the side of the down-and-out, but the stuck-up you take down a peg.” (Psalm 18.27)
