Where have all the nice people gone?

Where have all the nice people gone? The people that hold the door open for the person walking behind them? The people that wait for children to pass through the crosswalk before speeding through? The people that don't rage on the road when they are two cars back at a stoplight?

There is a serious lack of courtesy in our world. People are not nice anymore. They are tired, overwhelmed, overwrought, and nearly over the edge. The smallest misstep can cause havoc in their day and they will unleash their fury on those nearest them.

I try to spread as much joy as I can but, I have to say, sometimes it is exhausting. The world is full of joy vampires! They suck out your joy and leave you empty and tired. And, sadly, they leave no more joyful for all that suckage!

What is the rush? What is the purpose of meanness? What is the point of being snarky? I can't believe that rude people find happiness in being crotchety. Maybe they don't know the despair they spread? Maybe they are not conscious to the fact that people stare at them in disbelief of their comments or run when they see them coming. I actually shocked myself by doing this! I saw a constant complainer out and about and I momentarily froze in my steps before bolting up a flight of stairs. I zigged and zagged my way past people to exit the building through another door. As I pushed open the door out of breath and bewildered I scolded myself for being so rude. But, it had been a tough day and I could not take on another person's woes.

When I drive I see people flipping people off, laying on their horns, and rolling down their windows to screech at other drivers. Seriously? I see sales clerks accosted by customers and customers accosted by sales clerks. Why? What is it about this world that makes people think they can blow steam at anyone and everyone? What happened to kindness? What happened to simple humanity? There is snarkiness in the air and it brings with it melancholy. 

I wish some people could shake off entitlement and embrace kindness. Quit expecting things for nothing and stop getting bent when those things don't come. Don't bust a vein when you have to drive .2 miles further and make a u-turn because you missed your exit. Don't take it out on the clerk who has nothing to do with pricing when the sign you thought you saw said your grapes where 2 cents less than she charged. I wish people could handle situations with kindness. Spread joy not bitterness. Make someone's day, don't ruin it. Lift a person up, don't tear them down. 

I believe the world is loaded with good people who are just overshadowed by the bad. It is time to infuse the world with happiness and let the miserable seek company of a few rather than many.