A Lesson in Civility

I nudge the truck out of the driveway and onto the icy road. It is just after sunrise, crisp, cold and dangerous. I am testing the conditions and look in the mirror to see if anyone will be following me down the 6% grade. I see headlights about 500 years back then return my focus to the road and the stop at its bottom. Less than a minute later, as I wait to turn left the car is now directly behind me. It is a late model silver BMW. I turn left, still testing the handling and road conditions of my truck as we navigate the winding slight uphill into the shadows and back out. I notice that there are kids standing in driveways waiting for the school bus. I see their breath and their down jackets, backpacks and gloves. It is right at freezing.

I am driving at 33 mph in the 35 zone both hands on the wheel. The truck seems to be OK with the tactical. I do not, however, want to stomp on the brakes due to some unexpected road condition or another drivers inability to take due care and caution. For once there is no debate. The correct response is to err on the side of safety.

Suddenly the BMW is right on my tail. I open my eyes wide in the read-view mirror hoping that the driver will somehow notice my interest in our safety as he (?) obviously doesn’t. He (is has to be a male, right?) is putting on the classic tailgating move that never works: Force the issue by making the lead driver speed up. Never works. Especially not today upon frozen asphalt.

I try my best not to be intimidated or annoyed, but give a ‘go that way’ signal when we get to the next intersection. He does not. I am now shaking my head in disgust and annoyance as he seems aware that I am on to his game. My first thought is that maybe it is an emergency and he is hurrying a passenger to the hospital. Or maybe he got a text from someone in distress. I don’t know. I pull over into a mini-mart parking area and let him pass, pulling in again right behind him as he does.

He takes his time at the four-way and once through I can see that he is now going to show me what it’s like to be behind someone traveling at a slower pace than the speed necessary to achieve whatever agenda has been established as the goal. I am now thinking that there are drugs involved. This guy is not sober or straight. He is at 15mph and I am laughing at his juvenile attempts at driving while intoxicated or under the influence of some black market opioid derivative. Or maybe he is crazy. Maybe he has a gun and is looking for a fight. Could be as simple as road rage, or maybe he just had a fight with his wife. Maybe he is just another asshole trump supporter.

I decide to ignore him and take the next left, my normal route home. It is a winding, hilly stretch we call the ’S’ curves. Today with the ice and kids standing by the shoulder-less road waiting for their bus it warrants extra alertness and caution. I get to the top of the hill, a 90 degree right and see in the mirror that my friend is back. He has done a U-Turn and sped to catch me, up the hills and past the kids. He pulls along side me as I drive the straight stretch at 30mph, and although I didn’t see it, probably flipped me off, and then accelerates with gusto, the BMW humming magnificently as it speeds into the frosty distance. I am so impressed and honored that he would sacrifice his important time to teach me this valuable lesson in civility.

I get home and wonder what part of the pretext I will never know.