Dear Guy in the Tan Sedan:
What I want to know is this:
Was it worth speeding down the main street in our village to catch up to the three cars who were already over the swing bridge? Was it worth ignoring the one-lane bridge protocol of stop-and-wait-then-go-and-wave to shave thirty seconds off your trip? Or the 10 km/h speed limit on a structure that’s been around since the mid-1800’s?
Was it worth hearing my honking horn and rant about bloody well slowing down? Was it worth giving me your well-practiced smug look? What about flat-out lying to my face about not seeing me after I clearly watched you speed up and fly onto the bridge?
I’ve crossed that bridge thousands of times and, honestly, today is the first time I’ve witnessed that stunt. I know others have done something similar in the past because my neighbour once found a dead body in the cab of a half-submerged pick-up that failed to negotiate that curve you drove today.
I can tell you it wasn’t worth it for me. I lost my temper and with it my dignity. I feel ashamed. Your impatience wasn’t an excuse for mine. I’m sorry for calling you a weirdo.
Would it have killed me to have waited for one more car after waving through the other three? No. It would have cost me nothing. On a gorgeous sunny day I would have had thirty more seconds to breathe in the million dollar view of the river and the stunning palette of changing leaves. I would have driven home smiling instead of buried in a frowning, angry cloud.
I think of you tonight and will again tomorrow and the next day and the next when I’m stuck in traffic, in line at the supermarket, or waiting for the endless things we wait for as humans. I will pull out today’s embarrassment, hold it up, turn it over, and take a good, hard look at it’s ugly face. Then I’ll tuck it away – not too far away – as a reminder of what I don’t want to be.
So thanks for the lesson. Maybe it was worth it after all.
Sincerely,
Andrea