DOWN THE CO-OP

New assistant,
seems OK,
smiles.

Then at the end
of the transaction
says
"Can I interest  you in our
offer on cherries, one pound
a punnet?"
She points at a pathetically
small punnet
containing five or six limp
cherries.

"No, you can't"
I reply.
"And in fact I don't really
like you asking.
If I wanted cherries
I'd get them off
my own volition."

"Oooh, I'm sorry"
she says,
"I was only trying to
get a conversation going,
y'know a bit of interaction."

"That's is a noble intention,"
I riposted,
"However, I feel it being
accompanied by a commercial
proposition
somewhat diminishes
its sincerity."

At this point she seems to get really
wound up and tells me
she doesn't like my tone.

This is an instant,
a moment
in which I have to confess
on some occasions
in my elongated life
the situation has escalated:
become unpleasant and
disagreeable.
The dispute has often got
personal.
Things have been said
on both sides that
perhaps in the pure light of day
would have gone unsaid

However,
the passing of years
perhaps, have taught me something.
"I'm sorry you don't like my tone,"
I responded.
"I was merely pointing out
a fundamental flaw in your
argument. Also I come here all the time
and this is the first time someone's tried
to flog me something in this way."

She now gets the wrong end of the stick
but
a debate has been established.
we progress upon paths of reasonable
discourse, well fairly reasonable,
there's an element of lingering danger,
the possibility of fireworks.

But in the end,
it all ends happily.
We even end up establishing the fact
that she thought I said
the shop assistants in the co-op
pester me continually,
when I said the exact opposite.

They're OK, they're cool,
they leave me alone
or maintain a low-key
conversation.
Which is probably, probably
what she'll do
next time
she serves me.