Manners Matter

Dear Miss Manners,

The other day while I was in the check out line at the grocery store, I had to suppress the urge to tell a bratty young child in front of me that he was a bratty young child. He was waiting in line with his mom, and he asked three times for M&Ms. The mom, bless her, patiently explained that they would not be buying any candy today. After her final explanation, he screamed, “I hate you!” at the top of his lungs. Her face turned bright red in embarrassment, and I felt so sorry for her. I really wanted to put that little boy in his place, but I didn’t know how to do it. Was keeping my mouth shut the right move?

Am I Out of Line?

Sturgeon Bay, WI

Dear Am I Out of Line?,

There’s nothing more frustrating than witnessing a melt down and being powerless to do anything about it. I was grocery shopping last week and didn’t witness any bad behavior in the checkout line; however, the aisles were another story altogether. It was an obstacle course of blood curdling screams, food being thrown out of carts in fits of temper, and an all out attack on ear drums and sanity. My nerves were so shot by the time I left the store, I had forgotten four things that were at the top of my list. My rational side knew that kids will frequently throw fits…my irrational side wanted to find the aisle with duct tape. I had an inner dialogue in my head the whole time, but that’s where I left it.

I’m afraid you’re going to have to keep your reprimands inside your head as well. The patient mom you saw was horrified by her child’s behavior, and I hope she had a stern lecture for him when he was out of his monster-like state; however, I doubt anything you would have said would have made it better. The best thing you could have done was offered the mom a compassionate smile if she looked your way.

Good luck,

Mary Pat