"Momma, no!" The child's wails rose above the din in the store:
Mothers and children were everywhere, shopping for school clothes. Small children, too little to be involved in the hunt, ran amuck between display racks. Long lines stretched outside the fitting rooms, where impatient shoppers waited their turn to try on clothes. I understand a mother's frustration over a task that must be done.
The young boy's voice increased in volume, "But I don't want to!"
I couldn't hear the mom's response.
By now the little guy was sobbing, "Please don't make me!"
This time I heard the mother's impatient voice, "I'll stand right here blocking everyone from seeing you."
Surely she wasn't demanding that her son take his clothes off in public to try new ones on? But she was, regardless of her son's embarrassment. What was this woman thinking? Apparently she was thinking about nothing beyond getting herself through this ordeal.
Each time a new school year approaches, I remember this scene I witnessed. It makes my heart ache. I wonder about this little guy who has now reached manhood. What is he like today? What is his relationship with his Mom? How did the experience of undressing in public affect him when he reached middle school, where students were required to shower after gym class? How did he feel about himself with his mother trampling his personal wishes?
Respect walks such a fine line. Nowadays, infants and young children alike scream in public, while the parents completely disregard them. I wish someone would intervene in those situations because that wreaks havoc to all around.
Children have a way of growing up. If home is a breeding ground for disrespect it will show in all manner of ways. It can be fodder for sibling rivalry to get parents to pay attention to them. Do our children have a voice, or are they allowed to have an opinion?
How husbands and wives relate to each other can impact our children's future marriage. They act out what was displayed before them. It doesn't end there, but like an infection, it continues to grow.
The next thing you know, the disrespect flows out of the house. The relationship between neighbors can cause irritation. The infection can spread as we enter our cars, dodging in and out of traffic. It spreads into the workplace as peers step on each other to get credit where it may or may not be due.
Before we know it, divisions are created everywhere we go. Even the church is not immune. In the midst of a conversation, a third party walks up and interrupts, talking about something on their mind that they must say. Right now.
Respect is a small word with huge implications. Awareness is key. We should not only be aware of others, put ourselves in their shoes, and treat them with kindness and grace, but we should also be aware of negative, disrespectful aspects of society and combat their creeping into our own words and actions.
An old creed from my childhood is worth keeping in mind: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
