I was at the department store on a sultry evening. I didn’t need to buy much, and was soon at the counter. I knew, from experience, that one would have to wait a long time because the store doesn’t open enough counters, and the ones that are open are manned by not-so-efficient employees. The woman before me seemed to have bought a whole month’s supplies. Then a man appeared holding two bottles. He wanted them billed right away! But the cashier wouldn’t do so until she was done with the lady’s groceries. He waited impatiently for the lady to leave, and jumped in after she was done. Or at least, he tried to. If he thought he could take advantage of a youngster, he could not have been more wrong. I asked him politely to not cut in. He complied, but if looks could burn, I’d probably have two smoking lumps in the back of my head.Why do we have such bloated opinions of ourselves and believe that we must be served first, everywhere we go? We are unable to extend fellow beings even the most basic of courtesies. We teach children to form lines in kindergarten, yet we, as adults, can’t do the same.
