Consideration for other people is a lost concept. “The Hospitality State” is a misnomer, considering some recent personal experiences. Let me begin with the worst violation of personal space I have experienced in my 21 years. The house my husband and I rented in this seemingly safe Southern town was broken into not once but twice. A man broke in through our bedroom window and stole DVDs, CDs, a DVD player, VCR, cordless telephone, irreplacable jewelry and a bottle of rum. The police have a suspect in custody and informed us that he is a known drug addict, and, if he is the man who robbed us, he was probably robbing us just to get a fix. The man who broke in had absolutely no regard for us or our property and was out to satisfy his own selfish needs. What would have happened if we had been home or walked in on him? What would he do if someone broke into his house?
So we moved into an apartment in a new complex with a reputation for being safe and quiet. But Thursday night, “quiet” flew right out the window. I had to ask my neighbors to turn down their music twice-once a little after midnight and again around 2 a.m. I considered calling the landlord after the second request for the cessation of wall-rattling bass but decided against it because I’m trying to retain my last shred of faith in humanity and hoped that the neighbors would be considerate enough to keep the noise to a minimum. Should consideration for other people have to be enforced?
To relax after a stressful week of moving, my husband and I joined another couple to see Harry Potter. We were glad to see that no children were in the theater but realized we had gotten our hopes up too soon as two women and four small girls came in and sat right behind us. Throughout the movie, despite at least three “shushing” attempts, the two older girls talked while the toddlers fussed and climbed on the backs of our chairs. Although the women tried to quiet the children then, I think the solution goes deeper than simply telling them to shut their mouths and stay in their seats. Some time before Friday night, those girls should have been taught consideration for other people, especially in public places.
I know everyone can relate at least to loud neighbors and obnoxious children, so my challenge to everyone is to actually follow the Golden Rule-consider how you would feel if you were subject to the same inconsideration that you inflict on others.