If You Knew the Real Me...
You know, sometimes I wish we really COULD wear our hearts on our sleeves, so that people know what you are really like deep down inside. Too often people make hasty judgments about you based on their previous experiences. Like, people assume that everyone they meet are underhanded, or jerks. Let me tell you about an experience I had this morning.
My son had a fever this morning, so I drove him to the doctor to wait for my husband to join us, so I could go on to work. I pulled in to the doctor's office next to this blue van and noticed the lady inside was taking her baby from the carseat. My son was being fussy, so I was going to get him out and have him sit with me in the front seat until the doctor opened up. I opened the door and it was a tight squeeze between me and the van (the parking spaces are very small). I was careful getting out but then my door squeaked and opened more, tapping her van. I looked down to see if there was any damage, couldn't see any, and went around to get my son out so that I could say something to her by the time she got out of the van. Well, I just about had him out when she called over to me, "You know, you can be more careful about getting out of your car." I responded with a sincere apology...I asked, "I couldn't see anything, did I scrape your van?" She answered with a nasty "Yes, you did." I said I was very sorry and even offered to pay for it, but she said no. She then said, "You didn't think I was in there, did you?" Like I was trying to get away with something.
This is why I wish strangers could know the real "us." If she knew the real me, she'd know that I feel terrible about what happened. That I won't stop thinking about it for a week, or longer. That I would have paid whatever it cost to make her have a better day. Not that I was some jerk looking to get away with marking up a vehicle. We were both stressed out with sick children this morning and we didn't need a confrontation with each other to make it worse.
I promise, this will bother me for a long time. And honestly, I'm trying not to judge this woman. Maybe she's sweet as pie most of the time and was just having a crappy morning. But I know that I NEVER intentionally try to make someone else feel like crap.
My son had a fever this morning, so I drove him to the doctor to wait for my husband to join us, so I could go on to work. I pulled in to the doctor's office next to this blue van and noticed the lady inside was taking her baby from the carseat. My son was being fussy, so I was going to get him out and have him sit with me in the front seat until the doctor opened up. I opened the door and it was a tight squeeze between me and the van (the parking spaces are very small). I was careful getting out but then my door squeaked and opened more, tapping her van. I looked down to see if there was any damage, couldn't see any, and went around to get my son out so that I could say something to her by the time she got out of the van. Well, I just about had him out when she called over to me, "You know, you can be more careful about getting out of your car." I responded with a sincere apology...I asked, "I couldn't see anything, did I scrape your van?" She answered with a nasty "Yes, you did." I said I was very sorry and even offered to pay for it, but she said no. She then said, "You didn't think I was in there, did you?" Like I was trying to get away with something.
This is why I wish strangers could know the real "us." If she knew the real me, she'd know that I feel terrible about what happened. That I won't stop thinking about it for a week, or longer. That I would have paid whatever it cost to make her have a better day. Not that I was some jerk looking to get away with marking up a vehicle. We were both stressed out with sick children this morning and we didn't need a confrontation with each other to make it worse.
I promise, this will bother me for a long time. And honestly, I'm trying not to judge this woman. Maybe she's sweet as pie most of the time and was just having a crappy morning. But I know that I NEVER intentionally try to make someone else feel like crap.
