I will apologize before I say anything. I am an
old-fashioned guy, and I am likely to say something inappropriate when we meet.
I tend to say what I am thinking without considering how it might be
misunderstood. I have always thought that honesty and openness in relationships
were good character traits, but I have been told that sometimes I should be
less honest, less open. Apparently, I open my mouth and my thoughts fall out
and get me into trouble.
I am bringing this into the open (there’s that openness
again) because of a recent occurrence that echoes an earlier discussion I had
with my very Millennial daughter. Here’s the back-story. Both of my daughters
have worked as servers in restaurants at one time. Their experience caused me
to understand the rough conditions servers sometimes have and the low hourly
wage they earn. One result of this knowledge is that I tip generously unless my
server has apparently ignored me or otherwise provided poor service on his or
her part.
The other common result of my familiarity with the
challenges of the restaurant work environment is that I am usually very
friendly, helpful, courteous, kind, and sometimes humorous with my server. Here
is where the problem comes: my very Millennial daughter once accused me of
flirting with our waitress. I was not consciously doing so, but my daughter saw
it as such. Since my wife was also at the table at the time, I asked her if she
agreed with our daughter’s assessment. She did. She agreed that sometimes my
“friendliness” might be mistaken for flirting.
If I were to flirt with a waitress, I am not so brassy as to
do it in front of my wife and daughter, which was my defense to them: I was not
intending anything but to make a little light spot in what could be a heavy day
for the poor waitress. My two daughters’ experiences taught me that there are
plenty of customers who will be rude, crude, cheap and downright mean to their
server. I don’t want to be that person; I want to do the opposite. The problem
is that in today’s over-sexualized, harassment-sensitive society, a kind or
complimentary word spoken innocently can be misconstrued.
I think I may have stumbled into the same tar pit in my
part-time job in retail the other day. On Halloween, employees were allowed to
dress in costumes. One young lady I had not previously met came to work as what
I would call a witch or sorceress. Her costume and make-up were really
stunning: purple hair, hat and dress right out of some fantasy tale, and a face
transformed cosmetically. I complimented her outfit, asking if she was the good
witch, Glenda, from the Wizard of Oz.
She corrected me saying she was a character from a tale I do not remember.
Fast-forward a couple days and I saw “Glenda” (names changed
to protect the innocent) in her regular attire and make-up. I made some comment
about how nice she looked without the purple hair and weird face paint. I think
she chuckled; I don’t honestly remember, but I walked away wondering if I had
just flirted unintentionally. I did not get summoned to the office, nor have I
been served with papers naming me in a harassment suit. I think I am safe.
The problem is that now I am especially self-conscious when
I pass Glenda on the sales floor or see her in the break room. I ask myself if
she is seeing me as that creepy old guy who flirted with her after Halloween.
It’s silly, I know. But having spent years walking on eggshells in the academic
world where one accusation by a female can destroy a male teacher’s career, I may be
the one over-reacting.
It is an especially sad situation when so many people, not
just young women, could use a kind word or a compliment. I don’t know how to
talk to women anymore; actually, I never did; it’s just more dangerous to be
awkward these days. Jesus’ words to his disciples came to mind in this
situation: “Be wise as serpents but harmless as doves.” (Matthew 10:16) Linking serpents
and women may create a poor allusion, but the point seems to be that I should
be careful what I say lest my dove-like intentions are received as the
serpent’s hiss.
The easy solution to my dilemma is just to keep my mouth
shut. However, there are plenty of other Bible verses that commend words of
encouragement, random acts of kindness as some have called it. I can imagine
refraining from any comments related to appearance. That’s a no-brainer. If I
tell a woman that I am impressed with the way she handled a tough situation, might
she think I am building a bridge for a pick-up line? Maybe I am just paranoid.
Maybe I have absorbed too much of the sexualization that is everywhere these
days.
If I may make a suggestion to women offended by certain male
approaches, don’t make a complimentary remark from an old guy into something it
may not be. In fact, even if a guy is angling for a date with you, that can be
seen as a compliment too; somebody thinks enough of you to want to spend time
with you. Lustful leering, catcalls and whistles have always been despised by
women, I know. But maybe you could even receive them as clumsy compliments from
guys without taste or manners. They’re still compliments. You can’t always control
what a guy says to you, but you can control how you receive it. Am I wrong?
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