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CanisMajor
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Joined: 26 Feb 2012
Age: 35
Gender: Female
Posts: 271
Location: Miami Beach

13 Jun 2012, 2:11 pm

There are plenty of stories on here about times when a misunderstanding of social convention becomes a problem or an embarrassment, but what about when it becomes something good? It's easy to focus on the negatives; however, sometimes misjudging a situation can become a positive thing. I've had quite a few times where things I did ended up being considered emotionally "moving" and "touching", even though I thought I was doing something normal, something that anybody would do. I'm sure similar things have happened for others here. So what's your positive misunderstanding story? :)


I'll start with one of mine. When I was in middle school, there was a helper-teacher in my classes that came in every few days and assisted students that needed extra help. A lot of kids were always being very nice to her, trying to get her attention, telling her "You're awesome!" or "We love you!" I thought they were being sincere, although I didn't understand why they were doing it (since the kids in question never needed her assistance. Also note, she wasn't young or "hot", so it wasn't just boys trying to impress a sexy teacher.) I had trouble identifying and understanding authority/social hierarchies, so the thought that they were just saying things to "suck-up" to her hadn't occurred to me.

Anyway, I remember hearing her mention her birthday once. In my mind, I imagined her coming in on her birthday and being showered with gifts from all these kids that "loved" her. I thought I would look like a jerk if I didn't give her anything, but I also didn't have any money. So I took a piece of paper, some colored pencils, and made her a birthday card by hand. The image I had of her birthday was that every other kid would give her much better cards, much better gifts, and that my simple little hand-made card would be put aside and forgotten... but at least I wouldn't look like a jerk.

When her birthday came, I went up to her, gave her the card, and told her, "Happy Birthday!" I was completely unprepared for her reaction. She started crying. She started crying out of joy! She gave me the tightest hug and kissed me on the cheek, saying, "Thank you... Thank you so much!" as tears streamed down her face. I didn't know what to say. As the day wore on, I realized that nobody else had given her anything. I was so confused. The way I understood it was, if you love someone, you at least give them a card on their birthday. In the end, my card was the only one she got that day. At the time, I wondered why, especially since all those kids claimed to "love" her so much. Now, I wonder if it was the only unprompted birthday card she ever got from a student, period.


Anyway, so that's my "positive misunderstanding" story. What are yours?



Last edited by CanisMajor on 13 Jun 2012, 5:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.

CanisMajor
Toucan
Toucan

User avatar

Joined: 26 Feb 2012
Age: 35
Gender: Female
Posts: 271
Location: Miami Beach

13 Jun 2012, 5:44 pm

Really? No one? Well, that's depressing... :hmph: