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sixteen year olds can't handle crying
My sister’s friend had spent the night at our house, so her mom came to the door to pick her up. I was never comfortable around this lady, but I was the one who answered the door. So I tried to find some small talk (which I’ve never been that good at). The only topic I could think of was the recent marriage of her other daughter, and that they had a crazy obnoxious time with the photographer. The story sounded like it would be a funny memory. The photographer had basically taken over and had rushed everyone to the next step before they were ready. I said, “So, uh… I heard you had a crazy time at the wedding…” She looked horrified and started bawling in front of me. She didn’t say anything – just stood there and cried. Apparently it was only funny to me. I was only sixteen years old. I was not equipped to handle a crying woman. I stood there awkwardly until my mom came and rescued me by offering kind words to her. Micah the Admin
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the dead parrot
A couple years ago at a small party, we were watching funny YouTube videos. Someone mentioned the Monty Python “Dead Parrot” sketch, so I started loading the video. Two friends of ours arrived a little late, the video loaded, I started the video…awkward silence. Everyone started looking other directions and whispering. Then suddenly, the girl who had just arrived burst into tears and left the apartment, her husband following. It was then that the hosts chose to explain to me that the couple’s pet sugar glider had died earlier that day. The breaking point was when the stiff, dead parrot was being banged on the counter. The sugar glider had been stiff when they found her. Awkward! Rose – Dallas, TX
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how's that schizophrenia going?
When I was about 15 I ran into a family friend who was a few years older than me at a youth function. She had recently gone through a rough time with being diagnosed with bi-polar disorder and possibly schizophrenia. This was on the down low and I only knew because my mother is her mother’s best friend. I stopped to say hello to her. I believe another person was standing with us. I, not being so big on small talk, jumped right in to asking, “so how’s the schizophrenic thing going?” … Awkward silence as she thought through being mortified that I knew AND that I brought it up. She said, “Oh it’s…fine.” Oblivious to the damage that I had done we awkwardly finished the conversation and left. Two days later my mother came to me and told me that the girl’s mom had called her. She said that that night she came home crying uncontrollably about what I had said and was horribly offended. I wrote an apology letter and gave it to her the next time I saw her. She forgave me eventually. Lucy – OK