There is much to be said about being a gentleman.

 

A few months ago I was out with my brother and my two-year-old nephew.  We were going to pick my baby sister up to take her to lunch for her birthday.   My brother was driving.  When we arrived at the mall he walked around the car and opened my door and then the back door to get my nephew out of his car seat.   After getting him out of his car seat, I took my nephew by the hand and we all headed across the street to the mall.  Now most malls have two sets of doors that must be gone through in order to enter the stores.   This mall was no different. 

 

My brother opened the first door for me and would have usually opened the second, but he continued to hold the door for some ladies that were walking in behind us.   However, he looked in and said to my nephew calling him by name, "You hold the door open for your Aunt JRA."  At which my nephew let go of my hand and with all of his two-year-old might tried to open the next door so that I could go through it.   Of course I had to assist in opening the door, but then he leaned his entire body against it and not only held it open for me, but for the ladies behind us.  

 

A few weeks later we were out for my birthday dinner.   We had to wait an hour and a half to be seated at an extremely busy restaurant.   All three of my brothers stood the entire time because they wanted to make sure that any of the women that were waiting had a place to sit.

 

Maybe I am just hyper-sensitive when it comes to noticing when a man treats a woman like a lady, but I find it a very enduring quality and one that either heightens or dashes my opinion of a man.   Women are not completely out of this either because I watch to see how women treat situations when it would be compassionate to hold the door for someone or give up the comfort of her seat for say an elderly person or a pregnant woman.  

 

This is something that I constantly observe, most of the time without really realizing that I am, but that was front and center this last weekend.   Jeje and I had been lucky enough to obtain tickets to see Wicked (which is fabulous beyond words and blogs are in the works) for Friday night.  So we got all dressed up and headed to the subway.  We boarded a crowded train in the T with only standing room available.  Being in dress shoes is not the most comfortable, nor the most convenient way to ride the train standing.   The seats were full of men.  Not one got up to offer a seat to us nor the older people or the pregnant woman that entered later.   I was disgusted.  I couldn't believe that they were either not taught or didn't bother to be gentlemen (again the women were just as bad when it came to letting the latter two have their seats).  

 

My faith was then renewed when we boarded the train later that night on the return home.  The train wasn't nearly as full and we could have found seats if we sat separately, but that would not be necessary.   As we boarded the train six teenage boys immediately stood up and made room for us to sit.  These boys were not wearing sweater vests and carrying their daily planners, they were in jeans riding off their hips that were in danger of falling right off, chains hanging from the pockets, dyed hair and jewelry.   These were boys from which most of society wouldn't expect much, but who knew better than any business man how to be gentlemen in a situation.  They won my respect, admiration, a huge smile and several times a "thank you". 

 

So I just want to repeat to the men that are gentlemen, thank you!  Thank you for holding our doors.  Thank you for giving up your seats.   Thank you letting us feel like we are ladies.  It means the world to most of us.  On a side note, don't let those witches that think that they are too good or above you being polite and a gentlemen make you stop acting in such kind ways, most of us truly appreciate it and you become more attractive to us when we see you do such acts.