November 09/13
Been a fun weekend so far with some well spent time with my son, errands run, a movie outing planned with the kids for Sunday, and a few chores done around the house.
As you may have read from prior posts, hockey season has started for my son, winter indoor soccer is well underway for my daughter, and my weekends aren't always my own to do with as I want and I'm good with that.
Most weekends will see a hockey practice and a game for my son but last weekend and this weekend seem to be aberrations to the norm as they've each had a Saturday night practice followed by a midweek game. One new thing for me is that my son doesn't want either his mom or I to hang around and watch practices as he feels that is for younger kids, not a big deal for me as I live fairly close to each of the 3 arenas used in the league so I drop him off and will either run an errand or head back home for the 50 minutes he is on the ice. That was the plan tonight as I dropped him off and than swung by Tim Horton's to grab an iced cappuccino for myself and a Boston cream for him as a treat for after practice.
There was a bit of a line inside so as I took my spot in it I scanned the display case to make sure they even had a Boston cream.... no luck as the spot was empty but as I looked for a suitable substitute out came a new tray that included the desired Boston cream.....looking good so far
As I waited in line a woman came up behind me with her two young sons just as I notice a woman at the cash who was using one of those wheeled walkers and it looked like she had a quite the order going as I counted 2 coffees, 2 muffins, and 2 iced lemonades. I wondered how she was going to manage it all and just did what came naturally by asking the gentleman in front of me if he could save my place and he said sure, so I walked over and told the woman I would be more than happy to help her and asked the person placing the drinks on the counter if they had a tray, the woman smiled and said thank you as I arranged the goodies on the tray and followed her to her table. Sitting there was her very old mom and what looked like twin girls around 5 years old. The old lady smiled at me and thanked me for helping her daughter saying normally she'd have done so but the girls were a little tired and cranky tonight. I told them it was my pleasure and to have a nice night.
Now all of this took maybe 2-3 minutes max and the line hadn't moved more than 1 or 2 people as I walked back to my spot in line, well what I thought was my spot but was soon told otherwise.
The gentleman who had agreed to save my spot for me made to move to make some room for me when the lady who had been standing behind me moved right up into the space he had created, I didn't think anything of it and just said excuse me whereupon she turned to look at me and said matter of fact "You got out of line so now you have to go to the end" as one of her sons asked her why was I trying to cut the line and it wasn't fair of me to do that.
I stood there not knowing what to say when the gentleman who had saved my spot turned to look at her and explained he had saved my spot so I could help someone with a large order, she looked at him and said she didn't care as I never asked her if I could leave the line and return so my place was lost as far as she was concerned and proceeded to give him a smug look as if that logic should explain it all. He started to say something to her and I smiled at him and said thanks but it isn't worth the effort or scene and walked to the back of the line. By this time several people were muttering about the woman and how rude she was being but I just laughed it off and said there are more important things to get upset about. With that remark she turned to me and said she didn't appreciate my attitude and undermining her efforts to teach her children right from wrong!
Now to say my jaw dropped would have been putting it mildly but still I wasn't going to let this woman ruin my mood or weekend so I smiled at her and wished her a good evening.
Seems that none of this went unnoticed as the manager came over, gave her a very evil look, and turned to me to ask what I was going to order when I got to the front, I told him my order not expecting anything of it when he turned to one of the young kids working behind the counter and told them to prepare a large iced capp and dozen donuts with at least 2 Boston Creams in the mix, when it was ready they handed it to him and he gave them to me and wished me a good night, I went to give him money and he waved it off with a smile saying one good act deserved another. I felt kind of embarrassed and thanked him and as I walked towards the door the gentleman who had been in front of me called out "Thank you for reminding us what a simple act of kindness means"
Now I didn't do what I did in order to get my order for free, but rather for the simple fact that I was in a position to do a simple favour that made things a bit easier for someone who needed a hand at that particular moment. Something I've done numerous times in the past and will undoubtedly do numerous times in the future as it's just how I'm wired.
If my son had been there I know he would have made that same move and probably long before it even dawned on me as that is the way his mom and I have raised him and his sister. The sad fact is that here was an opportunity for this woman to teach her sons right from wrong and set an example that might pay dividends later in life for them, but instead she focused on something as shirt sighted as the fact that I left line and didn't ask her permission since she was directly behind me.
My view was someone needed some assistance and I was in a position to help. Her view was my leaving line potentially cut her wait time down by a minute or two.
I wonder who benefited the most emotionally from their viewpoint.....
Earlier today while driving down to the Rideau Centre with my son he plugged his iPhone into the USB jack and shared some new tunes with me, he continues to impress me with the range of music that he listens to on a daily basis.....two that caught my ear were "Willst Du" by Robin Schulz and "Another Love" by Tom Odell
The first has lyrics in German but the instrumental is awesome where the second combines a good rhythm with lyrics that make you wonder about his loss..........
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