Thankful for lesson learned
Boone Goddard
Hey savvy news reader! Thanks for choosing local.
You are now reading
1 of 3 free articles.
Did you ever do something stupid as a kid or an adult and get caught? Caught on tape? Did you have to watch that tape and feel that sad, sick feeling? The kind of feeling that makes you want to slump down in your chair and pull your hat down to cover the guilt on your face? Watching just a few of the 2015 Black Friday stampede videos this weekend made me want to do just that and I’ve never even shopped Black Friday before.
I did, just once though, as a young teenage boy find myself experiencing this intense level of shame and embarrassment. I had been making fun of and harassing the new school bus driver, along with a few other kids. I stepped up my level of stupidity a few notches when I chose to throw raw cookie dough at this poor bus driver. Lucky me the bus had a camera on it recording my every action.
Now my mother is a wonderful lady. She raised 7 kids, worked hard and knew how to have fun. But she also knew how to take care of business and my actions that day on the bus were just cause for a “business kinda day.” She took me down to watch the video with the bus driver and the bus driver’s supervisor. Looking back on it, I’m thankful I got caught and had to watch this tape, strange as that may sound. The experience along with a good butt woopin’ really opened my eyes to what a complete jerk I was being and taught me an invaluable lesson in humility. I could have continued on for years, or worse, my whole life acting like that. I’m sure we all know one or two people who fit the bill … But if you’ve ever had a similar experience, I bet you’re glad someone held a mirror up to show you the error of your ways. And I bet in doing so, you became a little more humble, a little more caring, a bit more understanding, and somewhat wiser as you applied these lessons to your life.
It really is time for some people in this country to gain a little wisdom and do a little self- reflection and evaluation of how they act. It’s embarrassing to watch these Black Friday videos of people being truly horrible to each other, especially over material things. And especially as it follows the very day of the year we give “thanks” for all that we have and care for. When the world sees these viral videos on Youtube or Facebook, that’s America to them. To me, America is clearly so much more. But we have to admit that this sad behavior is also a part of who we are. We have to own up to this, as difficult as that might be. It’s okay to make mistakes as long as we admit to them and learn from them. The school bus video helped me realize how my actions affected others. The experience had a lasting impact on me.
These people on Black Friday who lose complete control and any common sense or moral reasoning need to be sat down and shown just how ridiculous their actions are: pushing down other people – including the elderly, taking toys from small children and even full-on brawls. Tragically, people have even died during these events. As a society, we must insist this change. Perhaps, like a bad behaved boy on a school bus, watching videos of our actions will open our eyes.
And because I can’t remember apologizing at the time to my bus driver, I’d like to do it now. I’m sorry for what I did and thank you for a valuable lesson that needed to be learned. It is my hope that we can all pull something valuable from our mistakes and continue to grow. But if you can’t find it in yourself to do so, may your mother give you some “business” until you do.
