what would you do?

if you saw domestic violence in a public place? would you run and help the victim? would you just stare and do nothing? would you confront the abuser? well today, i opted for staring and doing nothing.

it started out strangely. chris and i were at a mcdonald's eating lunch, and i was just staring out the window toward the parking lot. i noticed a car in the parking lot, with a man standing beside the driver's door. he was just standing there for a while, and i asked chris if he had noticed anyone inside the car. he confirmed there was a woman in the driver's seat. the window was open about 4-5 inches, just enough for the man to be able to reach inside and grab something.....i thought he was trying to get something from the backseat. because we were inside i wasn't able to hear the conversation, but he appeared to be yelling at the driver.

a few minutes later, he walked around the car, towards a cement pillar, grabbed a mcdonald's drink, and just blasted it at the passenger door of the car. the woman then took off in the car, leaving the man still yelling at her. he huffed around in a couple of circles in the parking lot, and then he started to walk away. chris kept an eye on his whereabouts, but then all of a sudden the guy came into the mcdonald's and ordered a meal to go. i tried to avoid eye contact w/him, in case he wanted a piece of me and chris, because he saw us watching the scene unfold outside. while he was waiting for us order, he tried calling someone on his cell phone, who didn't answer his call. his woman perhaps? after he grabbed his meal, he stomped out the door and headed on his way, wherever that may have been.

the whole turn of events happened in about 7 minutes, and i really wasn't sure what to think of it all. i can't help but wonder what set him off and made him so upset? where was he going to go now? will she take him back? it's very disturbing to see events like this transpire in public. i can only imagine what goes on behind closed doors at home :-( personally, i can't imagine anything getting so bad as to want to cause harm to another person. but i guess that's just me, because somewhere in north america, someone is a victim every day, every hour, every minute.