Just Believe!

Recently, I had an editorial published in the local newspaper entitled “Let There Be Light”. Right before I wrote it, I had been driving earlier that day and counted 13 times someone didn’t use their turn signal. 13 Times! Not only was I astonished, but I was also angry. I wasn’t necessarily angry at the drivers. No, no, no, I was angry with society. Not only is the turn signal a safety feature and the law, but it’s also to let other drivers, especially the one behind you, know of your intention to change direction and turn. It is a freaking common courtesy and not doing it is, well, frankly rude. I’ve been driving over 30 years and have never seen it this bad. Even worse, I don’t see the police enforcing the law which just makes it easier not to do. It would be easy to blame this on younger drivers and be done with it, but I’d be wrong. We are all guilty of it, at times, even me. We need to do better.

The turn signal was simply an example of a plague, an epidemic even, sweeping over our country as I know Cumberland Maryland is not the only place infected although, it could be the epicenter, patient zero responsible for this virus infecting us with rudeness, disrespect, and discourtesy. Just the other day, I was exiting Sheetz, a local gas station/convenience store, and I saw a guy coming towards me so instead of going right to my Honda and pumping gas, I waited a moment and held the door for him as I like to think chivalry is not dead. The gentleman went right through the door without acknowledging my existence, not even a simple thank you. I turned and put my arms in the air while shaking my head in disbelief but unfortunately, it didn’t make a difference as he, nor anyone else, noticed.

I am gonna give you one more example that will give away and allow you to see what I believe the cause to be, where this virus was spawned. Theres a store around the corner from me, Dollar General, that I am in and out of practically every day as I love my Red Bull, one of the few vices I have left in life at the age of 53. I am in there so much, the employees and I know each other on a first name basis, often being personal with one another. An employee who shall not be named, was ringing up a customer when everything came to a halt and said employee turned, looked at me and started to shake their head only to notice I was doing the same thing. Can you see where I am going with this yet? At whatever time, on whatever day, inside the Dollar General on Greene Street in Cumberland, Maryland, the world came to a stop as the customer at the register was…ON THEIR CELL PHONE! Trust me when I say that this phone call was not an emergency, just another pointless conversation by another ignorant person who was holding everyone in line hostage holding up all of our day without being aware of what they were doing to us and eventually leaving without an apology or even acknowledging anyone else’s existence and this was not the only time I have witnessed a situation like this happen. It was just another in a long line of situations where someone was on a cell phone thinking the only person it the line, the store, even the world, that mattered.

Ah, the mighty cell phone. One of the greatest, arguably the greatest, invention ever made is turning society into a bunch of assholes. It gives us instant access to people whether it be a text, a call, or social media. Ultimately, it is a tool used in making a person think the world revolves solely around themselves as access to their world and the world is at their fingertips. The phone doesn’t even have to be in the process of being used when an act of rudeness, selfishness, or discourtesy happens. The cell phone has been around long enough and access to it keeps starting at a younger age that its impact on society has been profound and disgusting and I am sad to say, I have been guilty of it myself. But I am aware and self-aware now and will try to do better as we all should be trying to be the best versions of ourselves possible.

I know times change and I am not trying to live in the past but isn’t being polite and having common courtesy something that should never change, no matter what? It is so disheartening that I lose faith in mankind on a regular basis making me want to be an introvert and not interact with anyone. Then, amazingly, someone, whether it be a friend or stranger, does or says something that I either witness or am a part of, and my faith is restored and once again have hope. Of course, that’s a good thing but it shouldn’t be that way. I know the days of my childhood are coming to an end, where neighbors looked out for everyone’s kids and each other as we are becoming more and more isolated and honestly, that fits me better as, for me to interact with others on a regular basis takes so much out of me that I need quiet time to restore and recharge. So don’t think I’m just another older person crying the blues. Just ask yourself what would happen if we stopped being polite, stopped thinking of fellow man/woman, lived in a world without common courtesy, what would the world look like and would you wanna live in it?