the more things change...

You, esteemed reader, have probably never been this person. You know the one I'm talking about. You've seen the situation at least a thousand times. You're in class/at the office. Someone walks over, asking if anyone has a pen they can borrow. You nod happily, and start rummaging in your bag/desk drawer to find said pen. Then, before you've even spotted the blasted thing (which seems to have gone into hiding for some reason) someone else hands said person their pen, and you are left looking and feeling foolish. Best case scenario, no one noticed that you offered your pen, so no one sees your crestfallen face. Worst case scenario, you were the first to speak up, and you are now labeled (perhaps not in these exact words, but basically) a bumbling fool. This can happen with anything, really. Anywhere where a stranger is asked to step in to help, a bumbling fool can arise. Asking for directions is a big one. Then there's pens, and other writing utensils, and keys, and especially when people need messages delivered.
In every situation, the bumbling fool is soft-hearted, eager to help, and happy to give up their time and/or resources to help the person in question. They see a need, and want to fill it, so they rush headlong into the first solution they think of- without waiting for the best or most expedient. And in every situation, someone else somehow manages to be twice as fast as the fool, and twice as efficient. When the fool gets back or looks up, the need is already filled, and they are left. Hanging.
Why am I telling you this, you ask? How does this tie in to the title? Well, I will tell you. I have always been the bumbling fool. Always, in these situations, no matter how much I grow or how many things I learn.
Recently a girl on the hall got locked out of her room after showering. I happened to be in the hall at the time. Her roommate was at the cafeteria and her phone was off. The poor girl, standing there in her bathrobe, had to be somewhere in 40 minutes, and she wanted action. So, I volunteered to walk over to the cafeteria for her, find her roommate, and the keys. She accepted the offer gratefully, and I did as I'd said. As I walk back to the dorm, a nagging feeling of foolishness starts to tickle my thoughts. "There was probably a quicker way..." and, en effet, when I get back to the hall, bathrobe-girl is nowhere in sight, and the RA is standing there, chatting with a few other girls. That had been another option- the RA's have access to master keys. Apparently, she'd gotten there first. Sigh. Once again, I am the foolish one. And now for the awkward text message to the other girl... "I have your keys... and your ID. I am holding them hostage until tonight. Sorry for embarrassing you in front of those people you were having lunch with. It all turned out ok in the end, haha."
blast. I've done it again.
I do believe I will always be the one left rummaging for her pen.... I wonder how many of the people I've given directions to over the years have gotten lost?
over 'n out.