Hold it!

Okay, I’ll begin with a confession. I am about to air a real pet peeve of mine. Will calling attention to it create world peace or end hunger? I think not but it might just make us get along a little bit better.

When did people stop holding open the door for the next person coming through? Let me just say that this is not because I am female. I think this particular nicety should go both ways. I am more than happy to be on the giving end of this one.

When did we all become too busy to look over our shoulder to see if someone was coming right behind? Why are we failing to assist anyone with full arms, illness, weakness or disability or a fellow human in general? I’m not asking you to take their packages or pay their medical bills; just hold the heavy door open! 

This has been on my mind for some time. I have had doors slam closed right in front of me more times than I can count, completely unacknowledged by the person in front. I have had full hands leaving an establishment and had the “hosts” stay right at their station talking about reality shows while I back my way out of their double doors. I have sat in waiting rooms, watched a person with a cane, wheelchair or crutches attempt to come into the office while people on either side of the door sit idle. Even after I have sprinted from the far side of the room to assist, these same people are unmoved. Why on earth wouldn’t a person help when he is twelve inches away? 

So, my request for this week is really very simple. If it is not your habit, please look over your shoulder to see if someone is following closely behind you. You don’t even have to hold the door open and let them pass first (although I am giving extra credit for that). But could you kindly ensure that it doesn’t cut their nose off as it swings shut? If you are a parent, please teach your children this small courtesy. If someone helps you out, please say thank you. It just might reinforce the behavior. And for goodness sake, if you are hired to act as a hostess, please act the part. I can take my money elsewhere, after all. 

So, please excuse my small rant and thank you for giving me a moment to speak my peace. I’m just hoping that a small act that uses very little time and virtually no energy might just help us all be a little kinder to each other. And who knows, you just might make eye contact with another human in the process. 

“What do we live for, if it is not to make life less difficult for each other?” George Eliot