Dear Abby, Disrespect, and the High School Male Population

I was perusing the newspaper a few days ago and smiled as I came across the Dear Abby section. What humor could I find in the questions, complaints, and woes of my fellow subscribers today? The topic of one of the letters I found can only be suitably described in one word: PREPOSTEROUS. A woman had written in bashing men who open doors for women. She stated that when a man opens a door for her it makes her feel inferior because she is perfectly capable of opening doors for herself. I don’t know; I just don’t understand. Chivalry might be a dying art, but it sure isn’t dead. Why would you want it to be?

First, I would like to shout out to all of the friendly strangers out there and say THANKYOU. The world could definitely use more of you. Last Thursday, I was not in the jolliest of moods. During second block I was walking up the drama hallway on my way to the little girl’s room. Other than myself, there was only one other person in the hallway, walking towards me in the opposite direction. I don’t know who he was. He was one of those few people you see in the hall that you’ve never seen before. Anyway. As we got closer to one another, he smiled and simply said, “Hello. How are you?” I replied with a genuine smile saying that I was fine and asked him how he was. He stated that he was good. All of this was said without either of us stopping or even slowing down. This seemingly insignificant gesture impacted me profoundly. I felt noticeably better before I even exited the hallway.

I’m just saying, gentlemen aren’t exactly something you run into frequently these days. I find this fact disheartening, apparently a minority belief. Too many young girls accept less than respectful behavior and attitudes from guys. Seriously. What is that all about? Yes, we do live in a society in which men and women are more equal than previous generations. Maybe it is old fashioned, but I think guys should still be expected to be chivalrous toward women. I am a capable and independent person, but I think women and girls need to hold guys to a higher standard. I find manners and courtesy quite admirable. I happen to be in acquaintance with a few fine young men myself. The other day, I was walking down the hallway with two guys I know. Reaching a pair of double doors that were propped open, both of them stopped to let me walk through first. This may seem like a small gesture but it made me smile and it’s nice to know there are exceptions to the high school male population, no matter how few.