Yesterday, I was walking down a long escalator in the Tube. I’d just come out of the science museum.

As I neared the end of the escalator I was blocked from walking the rest of the way by a man who was standing to the left of his son (in London, the left of the escalator is usually designated to people who want to walk rather than stand).

They were looking at a leaflet from the science museum together and talking about it in a very father/son way. I didn’t have the heart to ask him to move over and we were almost at the end of the escalator so it would only make a few second’s difference anyway.

Before I had hardly stopped, I heard a frustrated moan behind me, so I gently asked the father to “excuse me please” as I moved

over to let the man behind me pass.

A second later, I walked off the escalator myself. As I walked towards the platform, I watched him run down the hall and towards the train. He jumped through the doors and pushed his way into the already over crowded carriage.

I looked up at the board to see that the next train would be arriving in precisely one minute. As I took a seat, I could only wonder what on Earth was so important to that man that he couldn’t be a minute late for it? That he could separate a father and son sharing a family moment? That he could push people out of his way and feel righteous in doing so?

I don’t feel angry at him or resentful towards him. I feel sorry for him. He was obviously experiencing a lot of stress and gained little from doing so. If you think about it, he just ran past, even broke up, a magical moment without even noticing it.

Unfortunately, it’s practically normal and certainly considered acceptable behavior by most people now-a-days. The problem is, if you live your life as if everyone’s in your way, as if life is stressful and hard – it will feel like it too.

I lived in NYC for three months, and I have to say, that it’s especially common in Manhattan where being a workaholic is part of the culture. Manhattan has an untold, but infamous minimum walking speed limit on the main sidewalks and the subway. If you’re too old, or disabled, or just like talking your time walking, you’re looked on with distain.

I could go on about things I experienced in New York that concern me, but I won’t; because it comes down to this: if you chase happiness, you won’t find it. It can only be experienced – and if you’re reading this, whether you believe it or not, you certainly already have all the resources you could possibly need to experience happiness to the fullest right now.