Romance & Reality

as the saying goes, sometimes you just have to “kill them with kindness”. but that doesn’t mean you skip addressing the issue. i recently experienced a moment where my level of kindness was put to the test and… let’s just say, i passed.

now, let’s get into it.

so i was out and about, running errands and decided to pay a grocery visit to my favorite grocery store, Trader Joe’s. for context, this particular store is in a super busy metro area so traffic is non-stop here. they’ve actually gotten to the point where they have traffic directors in the parking deck and even had security in the store at one point. crazy right?! like seriously, shopping there should be considered an Olympic sport at this point because whew!

anyway. i’d pulled into a parking space and sat there for a few moments as i decided what all i was going to purchase. in this same moment, a van pulled up and parked beside me. no big deal, right? right. it wasn’t a big deal until the woman on the passenger side got out of her car, slammed her door into my door/mirror, looked at me with a flat face and proceeded as though nothing had happened. as though she hadn’t potentially damaged my mirror. she didn’t, but still. lol.

it was evident that her and the other woman expected me to respond in a particular way. but i didn’t give them that satisfaction. in fact, i even granted them a smile in the process.

the shock on their faces when they realized that they weren’t going to get the response they were looking for was very telling. i began with, “excuse me, you hit my door pretty hard. it would be nice of you to apologize when hitting someone’s door that hard.” no yelling, no foul language. just calm, clear and to the point. i will admit, it probably wasn’t the most perfect line, but hey, my heart was in the right place.

as expected, she immediately went into justifying her actions and took no accountability in the mistake she’d made. so after saying what needed to be said, i dismissed myself.

as i walked away, that same woman yelled out to her friend, “i honestly don’t care!!!” clearly in a chaotically emotional state, but that had nothing to do with me. our issue had been addressed and handled, and my groceries were waiting! lol.

unfortunately, they held onto the encounter and later walked out in front of me as i was pushing my shopping cart. clearly looking for further issues. but in that same moment, another lady walked up to me and complimented my outfit, which led to another woman joining in and us having a quick convo about fashion and style. a true girls girl moment. the two girls from earlier rolled their eyes and walked away. and yet again, i sent them a warm smile.

why? because it was quite evident that their internal issues had more to do with them than me. it was clear that we operated on two different frequencies, possessed different values, and our personal standards just weren’t aligned.

i received a few more compliments as i finished shopping and interpreted this as a sign of approval from the Higher Beings. not every nasty encounter has to be met with nasty reactions. not all negative energy sent your way has to be matched. while i could have handled that situation in the way those girls were looking for, i chose not to. mostly because it doesn’t reflect who i am as a woman. but also because *sometimes, people just need someone to show them a better way, to remind them to aim higher, and to show them a bit of grace.

… sometimes, not always.