This happened a few months ago…

Walking off the train, in the final minutes of your commute home is very liberating. It’s been a long day and all you want to do is rest your weary bones. I walk fast. Treating it not only as an opportunity for exercise, but as a race against the time I could be spending doing something mildly productive.

This night however gave me something else. Made me look inward. Walking briskly, almost jogging, I came up to a family of five – clogging the sidewalk. It was a mother, father, older woman, and two kids. A girl and a boy. Couldn’t have been older than 5 years old. Because they were impeding my race home, I was forced to slow down right behind them. After about 3 minutes of doing the trying to get by dance, I was presented with an opportunity to speed through. I went for it. Doing the awkward speed walk without looking at them. It was at this point however, that the two five year old kids started yelling at me. “Hey loser!” “Hey loser!”

Normally I would laugh at this. But this time it effected me. “Am I a loser?” “Maybe these kids are on to something?”

“Hey loser!” “Hey loser!” The insults continued to rain on me.

The fact that the parents didn’t yell at them and say that was not nice to say was a bit odd. Maybe they agreed? Could this family tell just from my walk? Am I that judge-able?

I’m doing fine now, but at the time I had a tough go at it. I got home, brewed some Chamomile tea and made it an early night. You try getting yelled at by two 5 year olds. Not fun.

That was the night things turned around for me.