To the guy I cut off in the Kroger parking lot in 2018

You were loading groceries with your kid in the cart, and I was in a rush to get home. I zipped into the spot next to you, way too close. You just looked at me, shook your head, and said 'Man, you got the whole lot.' I mumbled sorry but it wasn't enough. I think about that a lot now when I'm the one with the cart full of kids. It was just pure thoughtlessness on my part. Anyone else have a tiny moment like that that just sticks with you for years?

3 comments

3 Comments

kelly.hannah22d ago

you got the whole lot" is such a quiet, perfect way to call someone out. what do you think made it stick with you so long, like more than other small regrets?

emmaclark22d ago

It's the kind of line that just sits there, totally calm, and makes the other person's whole argument fall apart. My friend once said "you seem very sure" to a guy mansplaining, and it had the same deadly quiet effect. Those little phrases carry so much weight because they're so hard to argue against.

victorh8122d ago

My buddy was at a family dinner and his uncle went on this rant about "kids these days." After like five minutes of it, my friend just looked at him and said "you sound very certain about that." The whole table got quiet. The uncle just sort of mumbled and changed the subject. It was like all the air went out of his balloon with one calm sentence. Those moments really stick with you.