There must be something in the air. It has affected some people in a very negative way. Both Sparky and I had disturbing encounters. My encounter was at the grocery store. A mother and her son decided to escalate a disagreement right in the middle of the produce section. All I wanted to do was get some carrots and bananas. Instead I had to wait until it was safe to approach the banana display. The mother was elderly and in an electric scooter. Her son was in his mid to late 50s I’m guessing. They were having an argument that included calling each other vile names. The son at one point accused his mother of favoring his brother to which the mother responded that when he was acting like an @$$ X*!# it was easy to love his brother more! Anyway they nearly came to blows but the store management arrived and asked them to either stop the altercation or leave the store. The result was an uneasy truce and they moved away from the produce section.
Sparky meanwhile was at work dealing with a different mother-son pair. Seems they needed his assistance to print some comments made on the son’s Facebook page. According to Sparky, “She was all up in his business and continually contradicted every statement he made.” Seems he was being bullied at school and needed to print the evidence. From Sparky’s perspective it looked like he was bullied at home too! He wished the mother would’ve back off and let him help her son but that didn’t happen. He made the best of it but was very uncomfortable.
And all this happened in full view of the public. I suppose it is an extension of living in glass houses where our whole lives are on display via social media. Or it could be a lack of boundaries that are either not posted or continually overstepped. Maybe some folks just don’t care how society perceives them. I am all for owning your own quirks. The idea that the opinions of others shouldn’t determine your self worth is one I embrace. But there is a component of social responsibility that should be integral to all actions, interactions and reactions that are in the public scope. Namely we must respect others and their right to move about public spaces with a sense of security, without fear for their personal welfare, and with the remembrance that our words and actions should have a minimum decorum to avoid shocking or harming others.
If someone treats their flesh and blood with total disrespect, I can’t imagine how they would treat non-family members!
A Different Perspective 