An Uber Ride to Remember
We've been riding Uber for a pretty long time and our riding experience has been really good, and that in itself is already memorable. However, our ride last Oct 24th stands out.
The Uber Ride to Remember
Last Oct 24th, we sponsored Queerspotting, a Spectrum Manila event for LGBTQs. As always, we booked an Uber ride to get there. We waited for less than 5 minutes for our ride to arrive. I was carrying a medium-sized trolley stashed with Love is Love products and the Uber driver stepped out of the car to take care of putting my luggage in the backseat. When I saw the driver, Michee and I couldn't help but exchange smiles. We couldn't believe what the universe was throwing at us.
One of Us?
Jamaica was sporting a butch look, short hair, and wearing the typical clothes that our present society has branded as "man's clothes" - so Michee and I were sort of mentally asking each other if Jamaica was "one of us", an LGBTQ member.
Because I was carrying a luggage, Jamaica thought that we were going to the airport, temporarily forgetting that our destination was in the Uber app. I mentioned that we were actually on our way to an event for LGBTQs. From the rearview mirror, I saw Jamaica's eyes lit up when I mentioned this.
The Answer is Yes!
I went on to let Jamaica know that Michee and I are actually together as a couple, 2 women in love with each other. Jamaica gave us a huge smile and confirmed to us that we're all in the same rainbow hue. From then on we easily fell into a really friendly conversation.
We started telling Jamaica how we put up a small business, Love is Love, that's advocating for equality and promoting the rights of LGBTQs here in the Philippines. The three of us are all well aware how the LGBTQs here in the Philippines are treated as second class citizens and how easily we are denied of equal rights and even denied of our humanity. Jamaica thanked us for doing what we are doing. The 3 of us couldn't believe that an Uber ride would actually turn out to be as good as a moment that we were having.
You Are Not Alone
It's always good to be in the company of people you can identify with. And it's very heartwarming to know and experience first hand that there are people out there just like you who either are going through or have gone through the same things you're dealing with. Just knowing that someone out there identifies or feels the same way as you do, gives you that reassurance that you're not alone. And it gives you hope that things can get better. On our end, meeting Jamaica inspired us to do more in pushing for things to get better.
You Might Also Want to Read: We Are Your Fellow Human Beings
Short But A Memorable Uber Ride
As the car stopped signalling that we reached our destination, I handed our card and extended an invitation for Jamaica to the event. Jamaica happily took our card and thanked me for the invite, looked around the venue, lingering for a moment as if trying to make a decision of staying or going. But Jamaica said "I got to work first but I'll check it out if I have the time".
We started the ride as strangers. But in the brief 10-minute ride, we shared a moment and a strong bond.
Image Credit: Uber
Have your own story to share? We'd love to hear from you! Email us.
