Excuse Me

Excuse me, If I may please have a moment of your time.

Do you mind your manners? Do you have manners? When you are walking through a store and someone is in your way do you stand there and wait for them to get out of your way, do you push your way through or did your parents teach you to say excuse me?

When you ask for something do you end it with a “Please”? And when you receive something, do you say “Thank you”? When you do not understand something do you say “I’m Sorry or pardon me” or do you just say “What” or the ever classy “Huh”? When someone calls your attention do you acknowledge them by saying “Yes?” or again do you use the “What”?

Where did common courtesy go? Did it go out with decency, humility and customer service?

How about this? When someone is talking, are you truly listening? Are you actually understanding what they are saying, taking their experience and feelings into account or are you just waiting to pick out something about what they’re saying to use as personal reference giving you an excuse to speak so that you can be heard and not to actually trying to contribute anything productive to an actual conversation. Do you even wait for them to finish what they’re saying, allow them to make their point or speak over them while they’re still talking?

Do you know elevator etiquette? When you are waiting for an elevator and it comes, do you let the people that are on it get off and then step on? I once saw a guy throw a fit pushing into the elevator while people were trying to get off.

Is it true that we, as South Floridians, are ruder than New Yorkers? That we as people truly suck? Or is this widespread? How self centered and pretentious are we to think that we deserved respect when we don’t give any in return.

Me! Me! Me! As Happy Bunny states on my new laptop bag, “It’s all about me.” How you treat me, what you give me, what you do for me and how it affects me. Fuck everyone, it’s all about me. I expect the best but give my worst.

There is a common thread throughout most forms of belief regardless of what your faith is. The Golden Rule which states do unto others as you would have them do unto you, what comes around goes around, karma, what you put out into the universe comes back to you.

So would it make sense to put out positive things to those around us so that we can have positive things in return? Can you make your world a better place by being a better person outwardly? Have you ever smiled at someone or gave them a heartfelt thank you! You’re awesome and saw the butterfly effect that it caused? Is it too late to negate the black cloud that hangs over humanity slowly dragging us closer to damnation? Maybe not. Next time you’re out in public, try saying one of the above mentioned statements. Let’s see if it catches on. Or maybe just see how you feel after you're done. We might not be able to save humanity but at the bare minimum, you just might save yourself.

Thank you,
j