A week ago I had an appointment scheduled at the hospital next to Podo Mall to have a doctor look at my hand. One thing you should know is that I hate doctors and hospitals so, needless to say, I was already in a foul mood as I stepped off line number 2 at Sillim Station. As I turn the corner leading to exit 1 and 2, I hear a woman’s voice ringing through the station. I initially anticipated a younger to middle age woman screaming at a boyfriend or husband with tears in her eyes (probably a sign I’ve watched too many dramas recently) but to my surprise, there standing before me was an elderly woman (75+) yelling at a seeming younger woman who remained silent. Because of my lack of proficiency in the Korean language I was unable to understand completely, though from what I could make out, it was regarding some social injustice.
Without pausing I walked toward the crowd that had formed around the two feuding woman. Unfortunately my previously created bad mood was affecting the way I perceived the event and a self-righteous feeling quickly developed within me. The disruption the two women brought to my life and the life of those who past by was too much for me to tolerate. As I walked by the group, the more vocal woman noticed my presence and stared in my direction without ceasing her vocal rampage. A feeling of being a victim of the “social injustice” became overwhelming and I vented my frustration.
“Shut the (bleep) up!
“You’re not children so stop acting like it!
“You’re in public (signally to the people which surrounded them)!”
The woman immediately stopped yelling, probably due to the shock of my reaction. Then as quickly as its creation, my frustration subsided and I walked toward exit 1 and to my inevitable wait at the hospital without looking back. Before I got on the escalator I initially felt proud. A feeling you get from perceiving yourself as wiser, more enlightened then others. However as the escalator climbed to the top, I heard the faint voice of the woman again beginning to criticize her rival.
Looking back on the situation, my feeling of superiority was a fallacy. The reality of the situation is far more humbling. First the elderly women were perturbed because of a perceived injustice caused by the other woman. But then they reacted in a way which caused a disturbance to those around them. I used this, in turn, as my source of frustration and continued the downward spiral of social disruption by harshly criticizing their behavior; unknowingly demonstrating the same behavior I was criticizing. For the most part, I just contributed to the problem, though I hope that the elderly women in the situation realize that some people will not tolerate such behavior in public.
so what's the point?
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