Pedestrian Rage

Let me preface this story by assuring you, the reader, that I don't just go around flipping people off. In fact, I have flipped off drivers only twice in my entire life. That's two times too many, of course, but road rage - or in this case, pedestrian rage - is extremely uncharacteristic for me. In general, I consider myself to be a peaceful person who tries to give others the benefit of the doubt.

But tonight was a different story. I was walking to the store on our local bicycle path in the darkness of the night when I came to a crosswalk near a busy intersection. I waited for an opening in the traffic, and when it looked like there was ample time for me to cross, I started walking. When I was halfway across the street, a pair of headlights suddenly veered towards me at top speed, forcing me to stop and almost hitting me. In a burst of anger accompanied instantly by guilt, I cursed the car and flipped the driver off. A second too late, I recognized the car. The driver looked familiar, too. Yes, in a town with a population of more than 22,000, it was my mother.

The car slowed and came to a stop. A little afraid, not knowing what to do, I kept on walking. After a minute, she drove away. Overwhelmed by remorse, I reversed my course and headed home to make the phone call. My sister answered my mother's cell.

"Uh, did you just have an unusual traffic incident?" I asked, just to be sure.

"Yes," she said. She sounded surprised.

"Can I talk to Mom?"

"Okay." She handed the phone to my mother.

"Uh, um... Mom? Did I just flip you off?"

"Yes," she said.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry. I don't know what came over me. I'm sorry. I don't normally do things like that. I'm so sorry." The words came pouring out of me in shame.

I thought she'd be angry, but she just seemed amused. She actually laughed, intensifying my mortification. "That's okay. It didn't hurt my feelings any. But you really shouldn't wear black when you walk alone at night. I couldn't see you in the darkness, and if you hadn't stopped, I would have hit you for sure." My wonderful mother - so undeserving of disrespect - was more concerned for my safety than anything else.

After listening to more apologizing, she finally stopped me. "Stop saying you're sorry. It's okay. I forgive you. Do you still need to go to the store? I'll give you a ride."

The moral of the story is... don't flip people off. They just might turn out to be your mother.

P.S. She's actually a really good driver.