Manners

Yesterday, Emma and I took our regular Monday trip to the library. As I was browsing the shelves in the new fiction section looking for something worthwhile, Emma was being "Little Miss Curious." She LOVES to people watch. Most of the time I think she is just being nosey, but I think it sounds better to call her curious.

She had wandered to the end of the book shelf that I was standing at, so she was maybe 3 feet away from me, still in my line of sight. There was an elderly lady sitting on a comfy chair near the fireplace reading a book. Emma, being the 2 year old that she is, stood by the book shelf watching the lady. The lady finally looks up and says to Emma in her mean, old lady voice, "Don't you know that it is impolite to stare?" At first I thought she was kidding around, but one look at her wrinkled old face, told me that she was completely serious. Emma turns and point to me saying, "Mommy." The old witch responds with, "Is that your mommy? You should tell her to teach you some manners." Yikes. I wanted to say something nasty about how SHE was the one being impolite and rude, but figured I would save my breath. I took Emma by the hand and led her away. The woman at the check-out desk had overheard Emma's exchange with mean lady and informed me that the lady is in the library every day and complains about something - too hot in the building, too cold in the building, someone sitting in her chair, etc.

Wow....talk about needing to learn some manners. I was not going to apologize to her for something as ridiculous as my toddler standing 6 feet away from her watching her read a book.