Speaking Up

The other day I decided to stop by TJ Maxx on my way home (quel surprise, I know)

I was in the shoe section when I heard a child yelling "MOM!! MOMMMMMY! MOOOOOM!" screechingly loud from across the store. I looked around, and only saw other shoppers also looking around and then it stopped and I went back to oogling a pair of silver Guess python sandals. A few minutes later I made my way over to coats when I noticed a little boy standing there.

Now, you know how sometimes when you look at something and you don't see the whole picture, but rather take in the scene piece by piece? I saw this boy and first I noticed the puddle on the floor, then I noticed his pants were wet, they I noticed his face. The first thing I thought was that he seemed too old to be wetting his pants (compassionate, I know) and the next thing I knew he was screaming at me not to look at him, which I admit I probably did for too long. So I went back to my coats and seconds later a store manager comes over and starts talking to the boy, asking him his name, where his mom is, etc. The boy would not answer any of her questions, nor would he move from his puddle. After a few minutes she finally got his name out of him and went over to the loud speaker and asked if the mother of XXX could please report to Customer Service.

Now, I never claimed I wasn't a total busybody. So I leisurely walked over to the Men's briefcases which just so happen to be right by customer service and half-heartedly looked at some Kenneth Cole laptop bags. A few minutes later a woman who looked to be right around my age came tearing up to customer service yelling "Who do you think you are! You do NOT say my son's name out loud like that! What the hell is wrong with you?".

I wanted the manager to say "What the hell is wrong with YOU, woman who loses track of her child for 20 minutes, hears him screaming for her (as the whole store did) and still takes her sweet time coming to collect him when her presence is requested at customer service"

But the manager, practically a teenager herself and scared witless by this woman, apologized profusely.

So, you would think at this point the woman would leave with her sad, damp son. But no, she just took him by the elbow and dragged him around the store with her as she continued her shopping.

I was appalled. But I figured "What can I do? It's none of my business". Well, it was enough of my business to hang out in Men's Briefcases for a while but that's where it ended.

So I went over to the home goods section to scout out a Lenox serving dish, and after a few minutes I heard that woman an aisle over from me, yelling at her crying kid to shut up. I sighed to myself, and as I went to leave I heard someone else speak.

"Excuse me, ma'am!?You are a disgrace to all mothers!! How can you treat your own child like that!? If I were the manager of this store I would have called the police. But instead, now I'm going to call child services" and as I looked over the aisle I saw this little old woman telling the other woman what is what as she whipped her cell phone out and started dialing.

The woman with the child muttered some profanities and made a hasty exit, as women all across the home goods section from the towel aisle to the baking pan aisle began to slowly clap.

Later at the jewelry counter, I was discussing this sad affair with the sales lady. I consider myself a person who speaks up when things aren't right...but really only in trivial matters, like when someone is rude to a cashier, or someone shushes my friend in a restaurant. I wish I was the kind of person who spoke up when it really counted.

And maybe you think what was said to that woman was rude, and none of that other woman's business. But she was the only person in the store that night who left thinking they did all they could have done in that situation.

The rest of us just watched, talked about it, and later tried to compensate for feelings of guilt by buying an overpriced pink topaz ring.

(Well that was just me)