Anger Explosion

 

I went to get my Covid booster last week.

My doctor said that I should get it before traveling this summer,

So I obeyed my doctor’s orders and got it.

 

At my local CVS,

There is a little area behind a red screen that is designated as the vaccination area.

As I was sitting there waiting for the pharmacist to give me my shot,

I heard a man on the other side give his name and birthdate.

I then heard the pharmacy tech ask for his government issued ID.

He was picking up a controlled substance.

The man asked why they needed his ID.

The pharmacy tech explained that it was the rule for controlled substances.

The man didn’t like that answer.

He began questioning why he hadn’t been told about this rule before coming.

No matter what the pharmacy tech—and eventually the pharmacist—said,

The man got angrier and angrier.

I started to feel a little afraid.

“This is the type of situation where someone could get hurt,” I thought.

“I really hope this man doesn’t have a gun.”

 

After what seemed like an eternity but was probably only 2-3 minutes of yelling,

The man eventually walked away, pissed.

“You can keep the medicine,” he declared.
“Because I don’t have my ID.”

 

This man’s response was likely a trauma response,

Triggered by something I will never know,

And it was likely fueled by anxiety over starting a new medication

(He mentioned that it was a new medicine a few times)

And a chemical imbalance

(I heard what the medication was for)

And a frustration at getting caught not having his license—

Which could be because he refuses to carry a license for personal or political reasons,

Because he accidentally left it at home and was aggravated with himself,

Or because he didn’t have a license because it had been revoked.

Or, the man’s response could have been fueled by racism.  

He may not have been able to get beyond the fact that the pharmacy tech and pharmacist were both people of color.

 

I don’t know.

 

Regardless,

His response was more extreme than it needed to be…

Yet, it was a much more normal expression of heightened emotion than I wish were true. 

 

May we, as a society, normalize healthy emotional expression and language.  

May we, as a people, learn to breathe and feel our emotions.

May we, as a church, hold space for people to heal from trauma.

May we, as screen addicts, remember that face-to-face relationships are important.

And may we, as God’s children, see beyond gender and color and treat all people as those worthy to be respected and loved.

 

Amen.