A few simple words

There are moments in life that can really put what’s important into perspective. They may not necessarily happen often, but we encounter these moments from time to time. If we open our eyes, ears, and hearts, we may be able to recognize them and use them to try to better ourselves and others.

One of these moments occurred for me early on a random Wednesday.

On a typical Rathz home morning, my incredibly hard-working wife, Megan, wakes up before the roosters so she can get to work early to tutor students before the school day begins. I don’t have to get up quite as early, so I lay there like a bum for longer than I should. Six or seven snooze buttons later, I bolt out of our bed in a panic, to hurry up and get my kids and myself ready for the day.

On this particular Wednesday morning, I leapt out of bed in my usual frenzied state and got myself ready. Now it was my kids’ turn. I woke up my five-year-old daughter, Mary, first as she is by far the easiest of the two to awaken. All I have to do is tell her it’s a school day, and she jumps right out of bed. She loves Kindergarten, and on this particular day, her class was going on a field trip to a farm. She was so excited and eager to wake up and get to school.

Next was Pat, my three-year-old son. He is a whole different animal altogether. When he gets up all on his own, he’s a ray of glorious sunshine. But when I wake him up early to go to daycare or preschool, look out!

After wrestling fresh clothes onto a grumpy toddler, I walked down the steps to chaos. My dog, Lucy, was in the middle of absolutely obliterating our TV remote. I mean, it was in a hundred pieces. Needless to say, I blacked out. Flames were emanating from my face. Didn’t she know that particular TV is what keeps my kids quiet for a few minutes while Megan and I catch our breath from the workday?

By the time I got that cleaned up and the kids out the door, I was running way late. Since it was Wednesday, Pat was going to Grandma and Grandpa’s house to spend the day. I put the old Mazda minivan into warp 3 and got to their house in record time. Phew. One down, now to get Mary to school.

Well, one thing I didn’t mention is that, from where Grandma and Grandpa live, there is no great way to get to Mary’s school in morning rush hour traffic. So, I did the best I could and weaved in and out of lanes before having to turn on Allisonville. Well, that was a catastrophic mistake. I really needed to get somewhere fast that was only a few miles away. What I didn’t take into consideration is if one needs to get somewhere fast, add on an additional four hours to your trip if you plan to take Allisonville.

It was traffic jam after traffic jam. Lane closure after construction-riddled lane closure. I had many choice words that were going to burst out of me no matter how hard I tried to keep them in. And burst out, they did.

When we finally arrived at the school, Mary was a few minutes late, which I knew was all my fault. But at least she got there safely and was able to go on her field trip.

Now that the kids were taken care of, I was on my way to work. And of course, I ended up in a … you guessed it … traffic jam! At this point I wasn’t even angry anymore. I was defeated. I sat there in traffic, wallowing in self-pity for making Mary late, using the language I used in front of the kids, and being late for work myself.

I sat there, stuck at a light with my head down, when I suddenly noticed the car next to me rolling their window down. A woman looked over at me and said, “So, on my way to work every morning, I’m supposed to tell somebody to have a great day. Today I choose you.”

That literal second, I felt a heavy dose of warmth and lightheartedness. I realized a couple things at that exact moment.

I realized that my “bad morning” wasn’t bad at all. So many people have real problems, and my little temper tantrum and being late doesn’t hold a candle to what they must go through on a daily basis.

I also realized, or remembered, rather, that people are inherently good. I don’t care what the media tries to show me. The majority of all humans are good people, even during an election season.

I thanked the stranger for her kindness and left my negative feelings right there on the road. I vowed to myself that I’d try to pay it forward, somehow. It’s incredible how just a few simple words can completely change someone’s outlook for the day.

So, before I lose my warm-fuzzy-feeling high, let me say to you … Have a great day!

The moral of the story is … brighten someone’s day today with a nice word. Life is too short to call that many people a “dumba$$” on Allisonville.

Tim Rathz can be reached at 40somethinginfishers@gmail.com. Follow on Facebook or Instagram.