On my way to work this morning, I paused for a moment and started looking at occupants in the cars next to me as they drove past.

The mood in every car seemed sombre, and no one was smiling.

I was wondering if they woke up with a sinus, which is part of staying in eMalahleni, are they listening to the news, or did they not have water this morning?

eMalahleni just went through a week wherein the entire city was stuck without a drop of water.

Residents could not fill up in time to gear up for what the municipality called an emergency outage, and due to several pipe breaks, a lot of suburbs had no water on the doorstep of the water outage.

Then a car stopped next to me at the stop street, and a mom was smiling and chatting away with her little one.

This car filled with laughter stood out like a bright yellow jacket in a black and white movie.

I know service delivery is getting worse every day, I know residents are frustrated, and I know things are not going to miraculously change within a year or two.

But the little car with mom and daughter made me realise that we miss those precious moments in life because of the situation the municipality is in.

But I challenge you today, if you are waiting for the light to turn green, just smile.

Just maybe I am the driver next to you who needed your smile to brighten up my day.

By following us on social media or visiting our website regularly, you will never miss a beat.

For more breaking news, follow us on our website, Facebook, Twitter,  Instagram or TikTok

Chat to us: info@witbanknews.co.za

* Zita Goldswain is the news editor of Witbank News. The opinion is her own and do not necessarily reflect those of Witbank News.