For all her efforts to be a good person, Melinda Waverly of New York City found herself agreeing to a lunch date she didn't intend to keep, sending her into a spiral of shame over her own lack of authenticity.
"I know other people say 'Let's do lunch' without meaning it, but I've always vowed not to be one of those people," she said. "And look at me now."
In fact, Waverly hadn't said it; it was a coworker she barely knew who'd suggested that she and Waverly should have lunch sometime. Even so, Waverly faults only herself for her falsely cheerful response of smiling and saying, "Yes, let's!", aware even in the moment of the deceptive nature of her enthusiasm.
"If only I'd just nodded vaguely and remained non-committal," said Waverly. "I could've lived with myself with that."
Since the incident, with the help of some deep self-reflection and personal analysis, Waverly says that she is slowly coming to terms with the kind of person she is.
"At the end of the day. I'm just a fake, superficial person who makes small talk and false lunch dates. I have to somehow learn to be okay with that," she said. "It is humbling, though."
