Proofing quid pro quotient

Every decision we make; every action we take; every conclusion we draw; every value to which we ascribe meaning is the result of factors so numerous that only an infinitesimal fraction can ever be identified. Then, of the tiny fraction we see, only a fragment can be properly understood. If we can only fathom a fragment of a fraction of what motivates us, how then can we possibly understand why the people around us do the things they do? And yet, we navigate our existence under such seemingly impossible circumstances.

These were the thoughts running through my head the other night as I stood in line for drinks at a basketball game for which I bought the tickets. My friend, who did not buy the tickets, was still seated in his chair, in our section. Me, in line to buy drinks. Him, in the seats that I purchased.

I cannot profess to understand why my friend wouldn’t volunteer to buy drinks at the game for which I paid the entry fee. I only know that prior to this experience, I had trusted in one unassailable principle* to be universal: if you receive a ticket to an event – sporting, theatrical, concert or otherwise – you owe the estimated value of your ticket in drinks to the person who offered you the opportunity to accompany them.

Now, you might argue that if my nose was so thoroughly dislocated by my friend’s actions, I have a responsibility to speak up – if not for my own sense of pride, then to save him from further embarrassment at his next event. But what the purveyor of such myopic advice fails to realize is that this rule is neither spoken nor written for reason. This exchange is bartered in silence because the lack of a verbal or drafted charter for the evening’s festivities boasts like-mindedness; it brags of being of one accord. The hushed tone that surrounds it further strengthens the bonds of friendship that are the purpose of the experience in the first place.

It might seem crass, therefore, to write about a party not making good on their quiet obligation in this affair. Worry not. It is safe to assume that anyone with such little regard for life’s unwritten rules, will extend the same blatant contempt for decorum into reading any effort his friend composes. My words here will go as unread by his eyes as the seat number on the next pair of tickets I purchase.

*Not applicable to certain romantic engagements or events for which you exhibit no enthusiasm and are only going for your friend’s benefit.