People Sit There

The Split Second-In Consideration of Others in These Trying Times

 Again, I thank all of you who have been so supportive as I try to get support for my unpublished book The Split Second:  In Consideration of Others or Look Up from the Phone and How to Deal with Rudeness in Others. As of this writing, I can state that there is some hope right now for success; however, I want to stress that it is only a bit of hope.

I am reminded of the days when I was a high school classroom teacher. Occasionally, I would be walking up and down the various rows, and sometimes, a student would place his/her feet on the seat of the empty desk in front of him/her. Sure, all of us would like to relax and recline if we can. However, when I spotted a student performing this dreadful practice, I would simply indicate that he/she needed to remove his/her feet immediately, and I would do this with my hands and a given look on my face. Often, the student would remove his/her feet very quickly and not say a word. However, I would add the comment, “People sit there.” Most of us would see this same practice in a movie theatre. I have even attended a movie showing with someone who practices the” reclining position” by putting his/her feet on the seat in the theatre in front of him/her. I do not hesitate to ask my movie theatre companion not to do that when I am in his/her company.

The Split Second advocates that a person needs to think first before putting feet on any other chair or seat and remember a phrase like mine, “People sit there.” The Split Second is just that: a quick thought to do the right thing at the right moment, and it is just a moment at that.  After all, would any of us want to sit where someone else had just placed his feet? That is what we need to think about when deciding to do the appropriate action with our feet.

Now that one was short!