I believe that you can tell a lot about a person's character by how they behave in the school kid's drop off lanes. There is a daily moment when ego battles common good.
To provide a safe environment and to ensure orderly drop off, clearly defined parameters are set at the beginning of each academic year to protect kids and parents. A small lot, walkers, riders, the normal morning hussle and bussle. The process... simple, civil.
And yet, each morning a select few whiz into the lot from the wrong direction bypassing the masses who orderly wait their turn in line. They cut the line. They zoom too fast for children's presence. They don't go to the far end of the drop off point so that others can pull up for kid departures as well...
Somehow their morning is more rushed than ours. Somehow their next gig is vital to our mundane. Somehow their child cannot walk the extra 15 feet from a little further up the drive.
Breathe deep o'masses of civil beings. Count to ten rather than screaming a curse. And by all means keep both hands and all fingers wrapped around the wheel.
I use the moment to teach chaos theory and the benefits of orderly behavior to my third grader. Breathe.
Commute by bike for awhile and you notice that everyone seems to be more important than you and nobody believes that you could possibly be in a hurry. And I'm not even going to get started on student drop-off zones. I'm going to turn and walk slowly away now before I get too high on my soap box.
ReplyDeleteOh man... I think my road rage would come out in full force in the student drop-off lot. You are a far better person than me. :) Hopefully when our daughter is old enough to be dropped off at school, I will have developed a better sense of patience. I honestly try to act with grace in tough situations, but when it comes to driving - somehow I ALWAYS lose that battle.
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