I met up with a friend yesterday in a park. She brought a friend along as well. Now I know I have a problem with authority. I know I really do not appreciate being told what to do, what to think, how to behave. I am working on it. Really I am. But that doesn’t mean things don’t get under my skin. And what itches most is when people respond to statments I make which are based on my own personal experiance in a negative way. You know, as if they know better than me because they have an opinion based on…oh…NOTHING.
I’ve travelled, lived and worked all over North America, Europe, Africa and Asia. I speak a smattering of five diffrent languages. I’m intelligent (even if my spelling sucks.) I’ve spoken to crowds of thousands about my experiances over seas. And yet, this woman still felt the need to point out where I was “wrong” about my experiances.
When I said I had felt safer living as a single woman in India than I do living as a single woman in America she said I was wrong to feel that way. When I said that there were more senseless crimes in America than in China she told me point blank I didn’t know what I was talking about. I tried to be gracious. I really did.
However, when I could take it no more, and had steared the conversation away from my travels to something I thought she could maybe better relate to (motherhood) and she broke this camel’s back with a single sentence.
I told her I had a friend who has five children, homeschool’s them and works out of her home. I told her this in the context of friends I am uber proud of, impressed by and L-O-V-E being with. She asked, what kind of business does she run? I explained that she sold organic health care products from her home. “Like Avon?” This woman ignorantly asked with a snort. She literally snorted! “No,” I responded calmly. “They are organic health care products. From Switzerland.” “And you all feel guilty for the poor stay at home, overworked mom so you keep her in business. I hate it when mothers play the guilt card.” CrACk! <that was the sound of my reserve breaking.>
How dare she be so negative about a person and situation she knows nothing about? The audacity of it astounded me beyond measure. Our little gathering ended shortly thereafter and yet, I fumed for hours.
Until I realized I just have to let it go. I refuse to catch her disease.
This blog is like a sauna for me. I am sweating out the impurity.
