Remember Your Manners

To the Editor:

Every time I go into Stew Leonard’s to visit my grandmother while she’s working, a little part of my soul dies. Has anyone actually watched how people act when they’re in there? It’s a sad display of human nature, and it’s really getting on my nerves.

What I’m talking about here is a blatant disregard for manners. I want you to answer honestly to this, those of you that go in there to get the samples: How many times do you say “Thank you” after you grab one of those oh so important quarter servings of food? Do you ever say “Have a nice day” right before you charge off with the theory that if you don’t move quickly enough, the next sample station will close before you get there? I’m not saying you should have a 15-minute conversation with the ladies, but there’s no harm in making small talk. The sample ladies are people too, despite your efforts to look down on them. They all have private lives with their own issues, so you treating them like a second class citizen isn’t just insulting, it’s degrading.

We always say that if my grandmother had started writing a book about her experiences when she first started, it would be a bestseller by now. And the best part is, the people that would have purchased and loved it would be the same people the stories were about. There’s the saying that ignorance is bliss, but that’s just a fool’s excuse. Take some personal responsibility, and remember your manners when you go shopping at Stew’s or anywhere, really. You don’t know what battles the person on the other side of the table is fighting.

Matt Cole

9 Scenic View Drive, Newtown                               September 9, 2009