Yes, Yes, I know, I am old enough to be your grandmother and I see in your eyes that you think I am a little old fashioned, but I am going to say this anyway. This is getting to be a very rude, ill mannered world and no good will come of it. It is not any good pretending to agree with me either, because that will not change to world and it is moving at increasing speed to a time when everybody just says exactly what they think in any daily situation.
If you catch an infection,
you go and have it treated, and that during that illness and the slow recovery
you have to do as person treating you advises and slowly the problem starts to
heal. Without addressing a problem and simply accepting it, germs spread and can
become contagious diseases.
In my opinion we are we are
standing back and watching a modern plague develop. The reason children have
poor manners, is because their parents have not taught them to be polite. They have
not explained that if you want grow up to be a happy person, then you have to
try to make those around you happy. That you have to be nice to people that you
hope will be your friends and then they will respond to you and your smile and
your politeness and your kindness. You have to treat people the way you would
like to be treated.
Last weekend I walked into
Arundel Railway station and went to the little window. At the other side of the
office a man was sitting at the table texting. He took absolutely no notice
of me standing there waiting to be helped. I gave it a moment and then smiled
and said “Excuse me, could you help me please”. He looked up at me, I broadened
the smile, “Can you tell me how I…… He did come over, and abruptly answered a
few questions and did sell me a two day parking ticket. I took the ticket and as
a very infrequent train traveller I said, “Do I take it with me and put it in
the machine when I get back or do I leave it in the window”. Now it may sound
like a stupid question, but I think employees are in place to help customers. He
exhaled like a ham actor and grunted “Course you do” and turned away rudely.
Two days ago we went to
Curry’s in Littlehampton to buy a new keyboard and mouse for the computer. My
husband and I walked up to the counter where a young woman was texting. My
husband said “Excuse me.” She gave him an exasperated look and said “Yes.” As she moved away to serve him I said to my
husband, “I think the young lady meant, ‘Good afternoon sir, welcome to Curry's, how may I help you’.”
Now, this is not the girls fault. This
is firstly the fault of the company, who have not trained the manager of the
shop to train the shop staff correctly, and possibly also her mum and her dad are
a bit to blame, and the system that makes people think that they should not be
thankful that they have a job at all.
On Saturday evening at the
swimming pool there is generally, because it is such a great parent saving service,
a children’s party in the little pool and then in a party room. Of course
children get excited at a party who would want anything less; but there are a
few who are totally unruly and are not corrected when they start yelling at the
tops of their voices and running about on a wet floor, which is dangerous. A
while back at a moment like this, I popped my head out of a cubicle, putting my
finger to my lips and said “SSSHHHH”.
It did stop the child in its
tracks, but she then turned her dripping naked tummy around to face me and said “I Ain’t
Shushin’!” I responded with “No?.....
But it would be so nice if you did.” The mother said nothing, not to her little
girl of about six and not to me either.
We have to try to change
this and we start by putting a smile on our faces instead of a scowl, lowering
the tone of our voices, and being polite to each other. Let’s give it a try.
Take a deep breath. And move forward politely.
Past the Point of No Return
The point of no return
Half way there
And half way back
Half way there
Or, half way back
Past the point of no return
No turning from there
No second thought
Too late to consider
What danger you court
Crossing the mark
That should depend
On both the person
Crossing the line
And the person
Marking the line
Or not
Stepping over the mark
There are different ideas
Moving the goal posts
How does that relate
Is that the same thing
Or totally different
As stretching your limits
Pushing the bounderies
The pendulum swing
Though that seems
Like a good thing
Go the way you know
Stop and cling
Fight the current
Or go with the flow
Against all odds
Battling on
All behaviour is learnt
Then again
If you learn
How to behave
From a parent
Or a teacher
They are only passing on
What they were told
Or should you be
A forward reacher
Second thoughts
Admit your mistakes
Acknowledge them
Could do better
We all could
Back to square one
Or should we have
Passed the point of no return
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