Kind taxi driver praised for helping mother of three on a rainy morning

It was a rainy morning on Jan 12 and Noor Shakila had her hands full taking care of her three children. 

Aside from having to send them to school, Noor also had to prepare for an interview she was attending later in the day. 

Her day hadn’t gotten off to a good start, as she was having trouble securing a cab due to the heavy rain. A driver also cancelled on her as he couldn’t afford to wait for Noor to get her kids ready. 

But her day eventually turned for the better in the end, thanks to a kind taxi driver, Cai Jiaxiang. 

It prompted Noor to share her heartwarming experience with the taxi driver in a Facebook post on Tuesday evening. 

After the previous taxi driver cancelled on her, she managed to secure a ride with Jiaxiang’s taxi. 

Describing the driver as in his early 30s and “well-mannered and helpful”, Noor wrote that Cai went the extra mile in servicing Noor and her kids. He had offered to take an umbrella for Noor and helped to take care of her son in the cab while she sent her two daughters to the school. 

When she got back, her son was crying and whining but Jiaxiang was understanding, as he too has a child who was in Primary One.

Initially, she wanted to alight after dropping off her son, but could not do so because of the inclement weather. She continued her cab journey back home instead, while fretting over the increasing taxi fare. 

During the ride, Noor shared with Jiaxiang about an interview she was attending later in the day and mentioned that she did not know where the location was. Unexpectedly, Jiaxiang looked it up on his phone and provided her with the directions. He even stopped the cab to look for the busses she could take. 

Jiaxiang also took just $10 from Noor for the taxi fare, which cost $15. He insisted that the $10 was enough for him and advised her to save the rest to pay for food for her kids. Noor wrote that Jiaxiang said that he has a child too and he knows how difficult it can be. 

“I was very hesitant. At the same [time] I’m thankful. He was very thoughtful and willing to go [the] extra mile to help me today. He is willing to let me pay just $10 so I could save more,” Noor said. She added that the good Samaritan even wished her good luck for her interview “with a thumbs up and a smile on his face.”

“May god bless you with many blessings on this rainy day. May you have more customers today. I pray for your safety. It’s very heartwarming to know there are people who are willing to help you during this period of time,” wrote Noor.

Plenty of netizens showered praises for the taxi driver in Noor’s post, which has more than 5,000 reactions and 3,600 shares as of Wednesday afternoon. 

“This is how all Singaporeans should be….. tolerant and understanding,” commented Facebook user Ewan Surateman.

“God bless the driver. His act of humanity and kindness should be an example to us all,’ added another user,  Mirsha Adrianna.