Sometimes I Wonder About The World.

One day, I was at work. I was sweeping up and down the aisles and people were kindly clearing the way for me to sweep with smiles on their faces. I sweep down aisle nine; at the end, a mother and her two sons. One of the sons was older, probably about 16 or so, the younger one, maybe four or five. I was waiting kindly and patiently for them to finish finding what they were looking for and move. The mother moves out of the way, as does the older son, but the younger son is just standing there, and the mother says, "Jonathan! Move Jonathan!" Thank you, that's quite alright, he's OK, I'll wait. Then the, presumably, older brother says, "Move out of the way fatass." Granted, the child was slightly chubby, but that is completely normal, if not healthy for young children aged about four or five. However, I don't believe calling a four-year-old a fatass is a very smart idea. When this kid grows up and his parents wonder why he has self-esteem problems, why not ask the stupid brother.

I continue sweeping. I lost a little faith in the world after that situation.

A couple aisles down...

I see a couple and their daughter. The daughter is picking out things she wants and the parents are saying, "Okay! You want this one??", "No, you can't have that one, pick something else!" The mother and father look at each other in the most loving way I've ever witnessed a couple look at each other. They were a perfect picture.

I continue sweeping. After that situation I thought, "maybe things will be alright after all."

Another day.
I was at Borders.

A mother was buying her some books. He was very excited for the books. Nay, ecstatic; I mean this little kid was bouncing off the walls. His mother says, in a very playful, loving way, "Calm down, or I'm not gonna get you your books." It was superb.

Some faith in the world restored.

Then today.
I'm on the bus on my way home.
A homeless man walks onto the bus.
Probably hasn't showered for days or weeks, which would account for his smell.
He has an extra t-shirt with him. Black toe-nails, long dirty hair and beard. He wasn't particularly groomed for any occasion, be it formal, informal, casual or the junkyard ball. Also, perhaps, not quite right in the head, but that's not to say he wasn't, you couldn't tell. Kept quiet, mostly. So I'm in about the middle of the bus and the people in the front were muttering and whispering about this man, i assume. The second this man gets off the bus, my suspicions were confirmed. At least 6 people in the front of the bus were beginning to say particularly unkind things about the man who had just departed from the bus. A young girl sat in the seat he was at, with her arm on the t-shirt he had forgotten. She was wearing headphones. This guy gets up from the middle of the bus, goes up to her, asks her to take off her headphones and says, "You probably shouldn't sit there." She asks, "Why?" A woman responds, "You shouldn't, a dirty man was sitting there, watch out for that shirt too." They continued to say mean things. My bus stop was coming up soon. I get my stuff, walk up to the front, and wait for the bus to arrive at my stop.
I just had the urge to turn around and say, "Why don't you people put yourself and his shoes and say the things you said. Regardless of what he looks like, what he's wearing, what he smells like, you have no idea what the circumstances in his life are or have been, why it is that his life is like this. Underneath, we're all made of the same thing; flesh, blood and bones. Shut your mouths and open your eyes." Then I thought about it for a few seconds...slight pause..."Assholes."

Of course, over and over in my head did I think about turning around and saying this, I didn't, but now I wish I would have.

I was losing more faith in the world everyday.
Then i thought about,
"Well, the world's not doing anything but rotating and letting us inhabit it."

I'm losing more and more faith in people everyday.

Luckily enough, I know and talk to quite a few people who make me think that maybe there is a little bit of hope left for this world.