The Death of Common Courtesy

Common courtesy is no longer common

It wasn't a sudden death, like a heart attack

It wasn't loud, like a car crash

It was a slow, quiet demise,

Like a whimpering end in the night,

After a debilitating stroke had left the body paralyzed and impotent

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A refusal to hold a door

An absent please

A missing thank you

Where once it was polite conversation,

Now it's a string of impatient swear words

Where once it would have been a polite wave into traffic,

Now it's a long, cacophonous lay on the horn

Where once hands were for shaking, high fives, or fist bumps,

Now you're more likely to get a middle finger

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How I wish for a resurrection

But sadly, only a ghost or two appear,

Few and far in between.

Please, please, please,

Be courteous!