So having a toddler means that you get a lot of repetition. Hi…hi…hiiii is a frequent saying of the Little Miss. The other afternoon we went to the bank. The bank we stopped at was in a plaza. Since the sidewalks there are fairly large I let her walk next to me without holding her hand. Well she did as she does always and started waving at everyone walking by. Once she didn’t get a reaction from the wave she started to say ‘hi.’ Once this didn’t get a reaction then the “Hi…hi…hiiii,” started. A gentleman who worked at a male clothing store said hello to her as she was standing in the middle of his doorway and I think he was just trying to make sure she moved so no customers would feel threatened buy a toddler. The mother/daughter combination walking into the salon didn’t even give her a second look, the mom just mumbled something under her breath and she guided her daughter into the salon. I guess she must have forgotten what it is like to have a toddler who has short legs and walks slow. Then the family of four (mother, father and two sons) barrle-assed by us and were visibly upset that we broke up their foursome as they had to part like the red sea to let the child by. Meanwhile I will state that we were there first and really your kids are over 9 years old, how difficult is it to have everyone walk to one side. At this point little miss seemed sad, not one of these people had said hello to her, smiled to her, or even acknowledged her. When we finally made it to the doors of the bank a gentleman walked up behind us. I quickly picked her up and told him to go through as it would take us some time. He smiled, said hello and continued to hold the door for us while we went in. He joked with her the whole way in and started chatting her up.
Thank you to this man who restored my faith in humanity. Are we truly so busy that we can’t smile and wave at a child. Are we truly in such a rush that having someone ‘in our way’ as we enter a store truly such a big deal that we need to comment it under our breath? Are we in so desperate for that sale that a 25 lb toddler would stop a man from going into the men’s store? I think we all need to take a few minutes and remember what it was like to not be jaded. What it was like when we believed in all that is good in the world. What it was like to breathe.
