It’d been a long and exhausting
afternoon: my second consecutive day of
hard shopping. Tired, I clung to my near-capacity
cart with an eye on the pop, precariously placed on the bottom shelf. Apparently my journey thru the crosswalk had
taken more than the time allotted by one harried female driver. Sidling up beside me, she cracked the window
and screamed “GET OUT OF THE MIDDLE OF
THE ROAD!!!!!!” Jamming the
accelerator, she was soon gone in a cloud of exhaust and kicked up snow. Startled,
I gave a mighty heave ho on the cart and sprinted toward the safety of the
parking lot.
On the drive home I reflected on this most disturbing close
encounter with a mad(wo)man and ruminated:
What
sort of rage/frustration would fuel someone to act so boorishly? What must this person be like at home with her
pets/children/spouse/family/neighbors???
At best, I had impeded her progress by perhaps two minutes. What in the world could warrant rage over
such a brief delay? I saw no
flashing red light so it seems she was not an emergency worker. Did
acting out in such a rude manner make her feel better? Did it
help her reach her destination quicker?
What a relief to reach the
sanctuary known as home and the welcome of my wildlife friends.
But the memory made me
question my own past behavior. In all
honesty, although I would never verbalize
my feelings, there have been times when I’ve been in a bad mood and silently
cursed slow pokes. In retrospect, I can
say with 100 percent certainty that my unspoken, yet unkind, sentiment did not
elevate my mood nor hasten my mission. All I received for my agitation was indigestion
and a splitting headache. Plus, I have a
sneaking suspicion my grumpy countenance probably dampened someone else’s day.
The voice of my mother came
to mind: Honey, patience is a virtue! For
your health, sanity and soul, slow down, relax and relish each day’s journey! Lesson learned!
Look no further than another
mother—Nature, that is, to appreciate all things in their time.
How very true !!!
ReplyDeleteWe all need to slow down, take a deep breath, and just look at the contineous wonders that are right before our very senses.
I for one, consider myself insignificant in the grand scheme of things - certainly not "better or more important" than any other living thing and am eternally grateful I can interact with everything offered.
True, I get in jams also - deadlines, too many irons in the fire, etc. But in these situations, I always remember what Jimmy Buffet said - NEXT IS NEXT. Good words to live by.