Isn’t it wonderful to have a soft place to land when the day may have been particularly unkind. That feeling that someone there has your back and is willing to defend you.
I’m lucky, I have many people in my life who will do just that. Sometimes when I don’t even know it’s happening.
Last week when we visited Epcot, there reached a point in the day that Mom was tired, so we let her rest while we scurried off to look at a few other things. When we got back everything seemed fine, but I found out later, Mom was fuming. She was fuming because of how someone else was behaving, moreover, in the things they were saying, in their own language, not in English.
Mom has a gift, although she’s never studied foreign languages, she understands the core of more than 7 different languages. And from time to time that’s a blessing. Because in places like Epcot, she can experience more of what is happening around her, not just the attraction.
While we were off flitting about, a couple made a variety of unkind remarks about other people in the resting zone, and apparently called me “Shamu,” (which I think is laughable, Shamu doesn’t have freckles like me and I can’t hold my breath that long). But what the couple didn’t know is that Mom could understand them. She heard it all. And it made her ANGRY.
I found out later she was ready to go toe-to-toe with this couple. I don’t know what kinds of glances were exchanged. I’m just glad there was no violence. I don’t want her to fight. I don’t want her to engage with people who are unkind. She doesn’t have to ‘defend’ me, just knowing that she was prepared to gave me the warmest feeling.
But let this be a lesson to us all … just because you think no one can understand you, you don’t have a license to be unkind, you truly never, ever know who’s listening.