Move over, dinosaur
I’m a dinosaur.
(Dinosaur roaring sound effects, please.)
Though I’ve suspected it for some years, I confirmed it this week when a radio station in Cleveland banned the old Christmas standard “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” because its lyrics offended women and advocated date-rape.
What???
Gee, I feel stupid. I always thought it was a flirty little song about a holiday romance. In fact, it was always one of my favorite secular songs of the Christmas season, and it brought me a smile whenever I heard it on the radio. My youngest daughter’s high school choir performed a cute rendition of it during their Christmas concert seven years ago. The singers earned a hearty round of cheers and applause from an appreciative audience.
Now, apparently, it’s anathema to a portion of the population. Clearly, I’m no longer swimming in the mainstream of culture. My expiration date must have come and gone years ago, and I didn’t even realize it.
Move over, T-Rex. You’ve got company: me.
(Although judging from the mix of media I’ve seen in the last few days, others share my opinion, too. Looks like the dinosaur contingent is growing by the day.)
Etiquette
Another clue to my rapidly-growing-antiquation became apparent to me when we recently visited New York City. Growing up in the 1960s, I learned to greet people with a smile and say “hello.” Being pleasant and kind was a virtue I was encouraged to cultivate. In NYC, smiling at people and saying “hello” is bad form.
“You don’t make eye contact, and you don’t speak to people on the street,” my son, the urbanite, explained to me.
“We do all the time in Texas,” I replied.
“This isn’t Texas,” he reminded me.
Roger that.
It’s also no longer 1965.
Or 1975.
Or even 1995.
When did good manners expire?
Rants, rants everywhere
And don’t get me started on how rude people can be these days. The social platforms we’ve come to depend on for so much of our interactions glorify divisiveness and anger. I swear that people say things online that they would never say in person. Every time I read a post blasting someone else’s religious perspective, political stance, or even personal food preferences, I can only think of one thing: Bambi.
In the Disney classic, Thumper the Rabbit says that his mom always taught him that “if you can’t say something nice, don’t say nothing at all.” (Okay, the incorrect grammar of that phrase has always been an issue for me, because I am neurotic about using the English language properly, but in lieu of the kindness of the sentiment, I can, for this instance, give it a pass.) Thumper’s maxim remains a guiding light for this old dinosaur, and I find myself increasingly unfollowing people online for their rudeness, and sometimes, downright mean-spiritedness. What ever happened to common courtesy?
Everything old is new again
Funny thing about dinosaurs: they might have died out millions of years ago, but they still enjoy popularity with humans, especially kids and Jurassic Park fans. Seriously, you can find dinosaurs all over the place if you know where to look: toy stores, Dairy Queen blizzard cups, wine coasters, costumes, and tortilla chip holders. I kid you not. Check out this link.
Who knows? Maybe, one day, innocence, good manners, and courtesy will experience a similar revival in our culture. Instead of people shutting each other out or down, being kind and considerate will be the norm. Sort of like heaven on earth, I guess.
Love, not war.
Hope, not despair.
Peace, man.
Hold on. I bet I still have a peasant dress and a tie-dyed t-shirt with a peace symbol on it somewhere around the house…okay, I’m a dinosaur.
And I like it that way.
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