It's Thanksgiving week, which means get psyched for sinking into a food coma this Thursday because that's what the holiday is definitely about—anyone who tells you different is obviously just an ignorant mouth-breather.
But this week also brings something magical, that is, one of my personal favorite holidays of the year, Black Friday. Black Friday is a wonderful testament to how quickly we can go from being thankful for the things we have been blessed with, to clamoring over each other and rioting to get deals marginally better than normal prices on things that we don't really need. It's American opulence at its finest. I have no issue with Black Friday; I actually think it's pretty funny to watch people fight over toys. However, I have a friendly reminder for the people who will be engaging in the terrordome-style revelry that is the day: Be nice to people.
That's right. I know that it's really easy to get caught up when you think you can get an amazing deal on scented candles, televisions, and other wonderful things, but it's important to remember that the people that are selling you those things and the people that you're prepared to stab or bludgeon to death to get them are humans. You gotta share the world with these people and while you might never see them again, they're still people. And people deserve dignity and respect no matter what, even if you both want the same "Lord of the Rings" trilogy Blu-Ray set, and even if that set is an extended edition in a collector's tin. Because, at the end of the day, it doesn't matter what hot deals you score this Friday. It doesn't matter if you can get all of your Christmas shopping done early and for a fraction of the price. What really matters is that you don't compromise the dignity of your fellow man for material possessions that will break or rust or become less enticing.
This is especially important when you think about the way you treat retail workers. It doesn't matter what time of the year it is, but during the holidays remember that the people working in these stores aren't there because they want to be. Many of them have families of their own that they're not with because they're working to pay for rent and food and Christmas presents of their own. Remember that these too are people that deserve dignity and respect. Remember that when you're about to yell at the young cashier because when she scanned your new tv it rang up at regular price—it wasn't her fault, and she is a person. Remember that when you don't think the guy at WalMart is cutting open the plastic wrap quickly enough—you're going to be fine, and he is a person.
People deserve respect and dignity. I know I may have said it a lot, but it seems like it's so easy to forget. Even when you feel impatient, inconvenienced, or slighted. Remember that this Black Friday.
Oh, and by the way, you can get most of the same deals before Black Friday and online the day of and after. So, just chill.
