7ightG4therer
The Force is Strong With This One
Hi all,
I had an unusual experience last Thursday I'd like to share with you.
Heading back from work that day I decided to stop at our local supermarket one block away from my home to get some groceries since a friend was coming over that night.
As I walked out of the supermarket and headed for my car that was parked right out front, I was called. It turned out to be from a car that had stopped across the street. It had 4 people in it and the back window was rolled down from which a guy in his mid twenties emerged. He was looking for someone and asked me for help. It was the type of person I would usually try to avoid to have eye contact with. Tattoo in his neck, baseball cap, beady eyes, that sort of thing.
When I replied that I wasn't familiar with the name he mentioned, he asked me to come over, as he couldn't hear what I was saying. I ignored my gut feeling and figured that, in broad daylight and with several people around, this wouldn't hurt.
So as I walked up to the rear window, he again asked me for this name and again I replied that I didn't know what he was looking for. He casually leaned back to get something and when he re-emerged, he held a canister of pepper spray, with which he shot me in the face with no hesitation.
As all four in the car started laughing I barely managed to read and memorize the license plate, as the car headed off and my eyes started to blur by the tears.
The next 20 minutes or so were agonizing and luckily the people working at the super market were very helpful. I was taken to the back where I could rinse my eyes for what felt like an eternity. License plate number was jotted down by a guy working there and the police was informed.
The police officer arrived a mere 20 minutes after the incident, just as the effects of the pepper spray were wearing off. She was shocked by what happened and took all the time she needed to get the whole chain of events down on paper. She was then briefed over her radio that these people had attacked someone else too, probably just 5 minutes before they got me..
Anyways, the guy showed up and pretty much told the same story as I did. He got the color and type of car correct that belonged to the license plate, which made it crystal clear what had happened. Now I just have to wait and see if the cops manage to get the guy.
This whole ordeal has got me thinking pondering on what I can learn from it. The last time I was willfully hurt physically was back in junior high school when I was hit in the face by some jerk from my neighbourhood. This time however it was purely random. Perhaps not on some deeper level, but I'm sure that to that guy, I just fitted the profile (no kid, no elder, no woman..) and I happened to be within shouting distance from his car.
I notice I don't seem to feel anger or resentment towards that guy. I stepped into his life for a brief moment and had a chance to experience that person's frame of mind, in a way.. Even though I don't know him, I do think I get the idea of what goes on in his head, or what doesn't. Then again, is my lack of expression or experiencing of (negative) emotion genuine? Is it all there is, or am I stuffing it away so fast I don't even realize it's being stored, only to come out at some point?
I did Vipassana meditation for a while last year and during that time I've learnt to grow at least to some extent detached from physical sensations. The spray hurt like hell but disappeared almost as quick as it came and I suffer no after-effects. No reason really, to be resentful. It cost me 1.5 hours of my life and I have gained an experience (and realized that pepper spray can probably be shielded off simply by placing your hand directly in front of the nozzle
I though about what would have happened if I would have just ignored the calls and had driven off or if I had punched the guy in the face as he pointed the can at me. He might have followed me in the first scenario and would have probably kicked me to the ground in the second.. So basically there's no real point hitting myself over the head for anything I should have done differently. I just know there are plenty of people like that and they inhabit the same living space I do. In fact, I generally seem to be quite succesful of steering away from petty tyrants, but sometimes they just win.
Have any of you any insights on this?
I had an unusual experience last Thursday I'd like to share with you.
Heading back from work that day I decided to stop at our local supermarket one block away from my home to get some groceries since a friend was coming over that night.
As I walked out of the supermarket and headed for my car that was parked right out front, I was called. It turned out to be from a car that had stopped across the street. It had 4 people in it and the back window was rolled down from which a guy in his mid twenties emerged. He was looking for someone and asked me for help. It was the type of person I would usually try to avoid to have eye contact with. Tattoo in his neck, baseball cap, beady eyes, that sort of thing.
When I replied that I wasn't familiar with the name he mentioned, he asked me to come over, as he couldn't hear what I was saying. I ignored my gut feeling and figured that, in broad daylight and with several people around, this wouldn't hurt.
So as I walked up to the rear window, he again asked me for this name and again I replied that I didn't know what he was looking for. He casually leaned back to get something and when he re-emerged, he held a canister of pepper spray, with which he shot me in the face with no hesitation.
As all four in the car started laughing I barely managed to read and memorize the license plate, as the car headed off and my eyes started to blur by the tears.
The next 20 minutes or so were agonizing and luckily the people working at the super market were very helpful. I was taken to the back where I could rinse my eyes for what felt like an eternity. License plate number was jotted down by a guy working there and the police was informed.
The police officer arrived a mere 20 minutes after the incident, just as the effects of the pepper spray were wearing off. She was shocked by what happened and took all the time she needed to get the whole chain of events down on paper. She was then briefed over her radio that these people had attacked someone else too, probably just 5 minutes before they got me..
Anyways, the guy showed up and pretty much told the same story as I did. He got the color and type of car correct that belonged to the license plate, which made it crystal clear what had happened. Now I just have to wait and see if the cops manage to get the guy.
This whole ordeal has got me thinking pondering on what I can learn from it. The last time I was willfully hurt physically was back in junior high school when I was hit in the face by some jerk from my neighbourhood. This time however it was purely random. Perhaps not on some deeper level, but I'm sure that to that guy, I just fitted the profile (no kid, no elder, no woman..) and I happened to be within shouting distance from his car.
I notice I don't seem to feel anger or resentment towards that guy. I stepped into his life for a brief moment and had a chance to experience that person's frame of mind, in a way.. Even though I don't know him, I do think I get the idea of what goes on in his head, or what doesn't. Then again, is my lack of expression or experiencing of (negative) emotion genuine? Is it all there is, or am I stuffing it away so fast I don't even realize it's being stored, only to come out at some point?
I did Vipassana meditation for a while last year and during that time I've learnt to grow at least to some extent detached from physical sensations. The spray hurt like hell but disappeared almost as quick as it came and I suffer no after-effects. No reason really, to be resentful. It cost me 1.5 hours of my life and I have gained an experience (and realized that pepper spray can probably be shielded off simply by placing your hand directly in front of the nozzle
I though about what would have happened if I would have just ignored the calls and had driven off or if I had punched the guy in the face as he pointed the can at me. He might have followed me in the first scenario and would have probably kicked me to the ground in the second.. So basically there's no real point hitting myself over the head for anything I should have done differently. I just know there are plenty of people like that and they inhabit the same living space I do. In fact, I generally seem to be quite succesful of steering away from petty tyrants, but sometimes they just win.
Have any of you any insights on this?
I'm really sorry for what happened to you, but it seemed that you somehow knew that no good could come from this encounter when you said this is normally the type of person you'd stay away from. Need to start listening to our gut instincts more, especially when he motioned you to come closer. I thought you were going to relate that he pulled out a gun. 
In retrospect, I guess you can be glad it was only pepper spray. Still, a nasty thing to go through, and hopefully, a lesson in awareness for you. There are a lot of whackos out there!
