Do you find people fresh these days? Not the kind of fresh that Febreeze
brings, but having a fresh attitude? By the way I do not understand how Febreeze
works, or what it does to the lungs as we all breathe in chemicals from a spray
bottle? Why are we inhaling this pollution by choice? I digress. I think adults
have become sassy, rude, and fresh.
This morning I noticed my mail deliver about 15 minutes early. We get
morning mail and it was a nice, early surprise. This is a new mail carrier.
Our former mail carrier, James was a temporary carrier. He was temporary for a
few years. He was lovely, sweet, helpful even played with Stormy, who now loves
mail carriers. Our new carrier was busy talking with the Orkin, pest control
man. They were having a fine conversation. I asked if I could get my mail, and
he answered no it's not finished yet/ I stood patiently and said nothing. He
went back to distributing the mail in the box we pick it up in. He said you have
an angry expression on your face. You should be happy I came early!. FRESH,
FRESH, FRESH. I could not help it, I answered, "yes but I am still getting the
mail at the same time". He handed me the mail and said, see you did not have to
use the key. I said thank you...
I originally planned to be a High School art teacher, but to be honest I
found the big kids, big of body and big of mouths. Kindergartners are a lot of
things but fresh, is not one of them. My children were never fresh. not to us
at least. My daughter said I have such a strong personality that it was never
worth the energy/ My son was not a mouthy kid, both kid have many friends, good
social skills. I am grateful we did not do rude, arrogant and fresh teenagers.
I realize society, morals and what is acceptable has changed, but a fresh mail
carrier. Give me strength!
People are in their own little worlds, pleasing themselves. Anonymously posting false nastiness about people who irk them, shooting someone else because that person's tone or facial expression annoyed them, or the person cut them off while driving or honked the car horn? What about those rude folks who dislike a customer whom they perceive as rude and against whom they gain revenge by spitting in the food?
ReplyDeleteI cannot control strangers. My response to the mail carrier probably would be to greet him, praise his earliness and basically interrupt his conversation with the exterminator. I would also inform him that I was grateful that he was early and not angry at him at all, for he wasn't doing anything wrong to feel guilty about. My face just was registering a concern whether I was receiving a particular piece of mail, nothing personal, all stated while looking him right in the eyes. Of course, I was a secondary teacher and had dealt with fresh HS students. But in this case, despite the illegality of messing with the mail, making nice to the mailman is probably a better course of action to avoid delays. Some folks in the modern generation have no fear or conscience.
Verbal curtness and revenge spitting go along with finger movements, loud insults, road rage, and a host of other behaviors that could be categorized as "rude," hostile, self-indulgent, tantrum-like behavior. Too many people are stuck in the "terrible two's." Sadly, they are old enough to drink, drive, vote, and hold down a job that interacts with the rest of us.
The number of people who are friendly, pleasant, open, kind, and polite seems to be shrinking. Why else are shopkeepers, secretaries, custodial workers, etc. so happy when someone treats them as another fellow human being who deserves respect? That behavior should NOT be unusual or exceptional. Polite people are not so special that they deserve special treatment. And yet, I gather, too few people act that way. Why?
If we are not acting rudely but do not stop others (our children, grandchildren, neighbors, friends, students), are we inadvertently encouraging those people to be rude?
You are touching a deep issue here.
Barbara