Kushukuru Alhamisi - Swahili for Thankful Thursday

I wanted to post most of this yesterday but I couldn't get my desktop to load blogger.  Rats!  Luckily, the laptop is doing its job.

I wanted to post something about civility and chivalry.  I think a lot of times there is much too little of either of these things displayed in the world today.  People are just not polite to one another and because of this, I think we have lost something quite innately good about us.  On Tuesday I experienced being the recipient of both civility and chivalry and it was so nice.  Unfortunately I was so unused to it that I found myself feeling embarrassed by it just the same.  (How sad is that?)  

On Tuesday,  a day after the deadly shootings in an Ohio high school an hour from us, Charlotte's school received a bomb threat taped to a bathroom wall.  Thankfully, although it was a prank and there was no bomb found after a thorough search of the entire school and parking lot, the administrators acted with wisdom and evacuated the students to a nearby stadium.  We received prerecorded voicemail phone calls telling us we could pick up our students there if we wished or they could wait a couple of hours until they were released to the buses. 

I decided to pick Charlotte up.  Because I was not thinking, and because I had no prior experience to glean from, I thought it would not be any more complicated then pulling up to the sidewalk near the stadium, handing them my picture ID and walking out with her.  So I just threw the kids in the car, without worrying if they had coats on.  The day was pleasant, sunny but a bit chilly when the wind blew.  When I got to the parking lot, it was pretty full and cars were moving in and out easily.  I found a spot as soon as I saw how wrongly I had judged the situation.

There was a PEOPLE line about 700 feet long at least and that was the queue for picking up your kids.  So I had to get the kids out of the car after all.  Unfortunately, when I got them out of the car I noticed neither Ruby or Corilynn had shoes on - nope - or coats.  I looked at them and I looked at the line behind me and I looked down at the unpaved parking lot that was one big squishy mud slab.  I felt my Mother of the Year chances getting ground into that honey brown slush under my feet. 

Well, there was nothing I could do but put one kid on my back and one in front and hope all of us hold on tightly and that the line that was currently not moving, began to move soon.  I got to the back of the line and after staying in one place for 10 minutes (my arms are killing me already and I am a billion miles from the entrance)  I realize that this is going to be a LONG afternoon.  I mean, what was I thinking?  That I was going to be the only parent to decide to pick up their kids in a school with 2000+ kids?   I could have kicked myself, if I wasn't worried about falling over into the mud with two kids on me like I was some African tribal woman.

Here is where the civility and chivalry comes in.  One lady offers to hold one of my kids.  It was so kind of her and I readily handed one to her.  I thought, I can hold one nearly indefinitely but two was going to simultaneously choke and exhaust me.  Unfortunately after only 5 minutes the line began to move quickly.  Unfortunately - because it was only moving because they were splitting the line into two groups according to last name.  Unfortunately still, because my Ruby holder was going off to the other line.  Sigh.  So I was back to the tribal woman.

After another 20 minutes, my body protested enough that I let Corilynn down off my back and decided to suck up the embarrassment of having her standing in the mud, barefoot and coat less, next to me (by the way I had shoes and a coat on - yeah double points for the "I look like a totally amateur mom" contest.)

I may feel a lot older than I am (and look it too) but I know I do not look old enough to have a teenager.  I mean I hope I don't.  So then I was doubly conscious of the fact that I have two kids barefoot and without coats, and I am in line to pick up a child from HS!  So to ease my embarrassment I made sure to make as many comments as possible to everyone within hearing range that I was picking up my exchange student (phew!  Now they know I was not 11 when I had her) and that I was silly enough to think I could just pull up and get her and so I didn't worry about what the other kids were wearing (or not wearing).

A nice man in line ahead of me then offered his coat to Corilynn (who happened to mention being cold - great!) and then he offered to hold her.  I felt so embarrassed but thankful for his kindness.  I also felt so fearful for the cleanliness of his pants as I saw her dangling, mud caked feet swinging precariously near them.  He held her despite showing obvious back discomfort for 20 minutes until we got further in the line and the ground was paved. 

All in all, we picked Charlotte up successfully and quickly made our getaway without much more embarrassment but I am thankful today for those two individuals who kindly came to a lady's (questionable) aid (stupidity) without judgment and scorn (at least not verbalized). 

I wish there were more people who would go out of their way for strangers and help them when they see a need.  We need not feel embarrassed (cause they are probably feeling plenty for the both of us) and the world would be a far better place if more of us showed kindness to one another.