Jan 10 2009
One Second, Does it really make that much of a difference?
I’m getting out of the subway, after about a twenty minute ride from the city. On the way through the turn-about, sliding, exit-things, I think I dropped something. So I hold onto the bar for just a second absent-mindedly to look down to the ground. The lady behind me makes this face and a sign, implicating to me that she was so upset that I took a second out of her time exiting the subway.
Now I understand the rat race to get out of the subway. Sometimes I feel so claustrophobic in those cars and all I can focus on is getting out of the tunnel. (The above ground “city-light” at the end of the tunnel). But we’re talking one second, one second. If she had gotten out one second sooner, would her life really be that different? One second later she’ll completely forget about “the incident.” (Or I should hope she would, otherwise she has some serious issues- which would probably explain why she made faces to alert me to the fact she was upset). All of that theory aside, why can’t you wait a second before you blow your top and ruin another person’s walk out of the subway tunnel?
P.s. No one can ruin your day but you. Ruin a few seconds, sure-but you ultimately decide if that is going to affect how you treat others and yourself that day.
