by Lyn Dee

Created on: July 01, 2008   Last Updated: May 01, 2011

Sometimes, another person's embarrassment is even trickier to deal with than your own.

When I was a student, I worked one summer in a small, seaside hotel. One of my many duties was to take early morning tea to the guests in their bedrooms.

I had a master key to open the bedroom doors but, to prevent any awkwardness, I never went in uninvited. Instead, I knocked loudly on the door, called, 'Morning tea!' and then waited for an answer. People who were already awake and out of their beds usually opened the door to me themselves. Others would call out asking me to leave the tea tray outside their room, but most would invite me in.

One morning, I knocked on the door of a room occupied by a middle-aged couple and was immediately answered with a cheerful, 'Come in!' I unlocked the door and carried in the tea tray.

The man and woman were both in bed. The husband was still fast asleep and snoring gently. His wife sat up and greeted me with a friendly smile. "Good Morning!" she said. "I had a wonderful night's sleep, this is such a comfortable bed!"

I smiled politely and quickly averted my eyes. It wasn't that I was shocked by what I could see, but I knew the woman in the bed was going to be extremely embarrassed when she realized that as she had sat up, her nightdress had slipped down - revealing her naked, ample bosom. I decided the most tactful way for me to deal with the situation would be to pretend I hadn't noticed her state of undress.

"I'll just leave your tea here," I said, and turning my back to her, I placed the tray on the dressing table. I moved towards the door intending to leave as quickly as possible, but she stopped me by asking if I would open the drapes for her.

"What's the weather like?" she wanted to know.

"Fine and sunny," I answered. I crossed the room and pulled back the drapes. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a shaft of sunlight spotlighting her chest. I was convinced she would notice what was amiss at any moment and I felt my face redden as I imagined how embarrassed she was going to feel. I headed for the door again.

The last thing I expected was that she would want to chat, but that's exactly what happened. She began telling me how much she'd been looking forward to this vacation and that she had never visited this part of the country before. Which was the best beach around here? Could I recommend some of the other local attractions? I answered as best I could while trying to look anywhere but at her.

I was beginning to think I'd never escape, when the woman's husband finally woke up. He turned to his wife, opened his mouth to say something, and then saw me. For a second, our eyes met. I knew we were both thinking the same thing. Who was going to tell her?

I took the coward's way out by saying, "Good Morning!" to him, and rushing out before he could answer.

I slumped against the closed door, taking deep breaths while I regained my composure. From inside the room came a gasp of surprise and then a giggle. "Oh, no! That poor girl! She must have been so embarrassed!"

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