People at the library

Today I went to the library with the boys. We stopped by the DVD section so Joseph could choose a movie. He usually wants to check out several, but he was having a hard time today finding even one he wanted.

"What about Dolphin Tale 2?" I suggested. "You like the first one."

He looked unsure, as we probably all do when confronted with a sequel. He ultimately settled on a Sesame Street DVD while Matthew provided loud commentary on all the other DVDs he saw ("that's cool!" he would say for each one as he put it back in the wrong spot). A woman came up to me and told me my kids were very sweet and cute. "And now are you having a girl now?"

"Nope, another boy!" I said. She congratulated me and told me that boys were the best. She wished me luck and then went off to check out her books.

As I thought about it, this is the reaction I typically get when people see I'm pregnant. Every now and then I get the response, "Wow you're brave," usually from moms of 1-year-olds or "You sure will have your hands full" from men at the grocery store, but everyone else is unfailingly positive.

For some reason, it always surprises me. When I get together with other moms, we sometimes talk about the strange things people ask or tell us when they see us out with our kids. And I do have a few stories up my sleeve too. I will probably never forget my 23rd birthday when an older man approached Joseph and me at the library and asked gruffly if I was married, and if so, was my husband employed. "Good. He better be," he said as he stomped off.

A few minutes later, after I stopped standing there like Taylor Swift at the VMAs in 2009, I had an arsenal of comebacks ready to use the next time. And I still have them ready for the next time someone says something that disparaging.

And, four years later, I still haven't had to use them.

As it turns out, to my continual surprise, rudeness is the exception rather than the rule. And while I can still remember each time someone was rude to me, those incidents pale in comparison to the normal politeness and even kindness I've experienced in public.

I know this isn't the case for everyone. Many people deal with emotional abuse that wears them down each day. Many people have employers, neighbors, family members, and in-laws that are intent on finding fault. Some people just have worse luck running into busybodies at the store who can't help but comment on your child's tantrum.

But I'm grateful that overall, most people really are nice. Some are tactless and some are rude, but most really are decent people who like little kids and their moms. Especially the people you run into at the library.