don't cry over spilled radlers

after the gym today, we stopped at the grocery store for a few things, including our beloved alcohol-free radlers. our favorite kind was sold out, so we got some blood-orange flavored ones to try, and some regular flavored ones from a different brand than usual. 

we checked out and started to leave, when suddenly one of the paper bags bottomed out and bottles came crashing to the floor. we stared for a second in disbelief, then sprung into action mode, moving our other bags out of the way and salvaging what we could from the broken bag. my fiancé reentered the store to get new bags, and alerted a staff member on the way. 

the employee appeared with a hand broom, dust pan, and trash can, sweeping up the bottle shards. my fiancé returned and asked if they had any paper we could use to mop up the liquid. the employee shrugged and said it's fine, they have a mop (which turned out to be a big industrial zamboni-esque mop device). 

then we re-bagged the loose items, making sure to distribute the remaining bottles adequately, and went on our merry way home. as we were walking, we remarked that things like this just happen sometimes, and it's nice how we can just accept that and treat it like no big deal. 

maybe the coolest part of being an adult is accidentally breaking and spilling things and no one yelling at you. though my fiancé pointed out it would still be no big deal even if the employees had been sour about it—we're still adults and it's still something that just happens sometimes. 

when i was kid, i was notorious for spilling things. which sounds kind of funny now that i say it; it's like saying, "when i was a kid, i was notorious for being a kid." anyway, i was even dubbed "the spill queen." i never got in super big trouble for it, but it definitely could put everyone in a bad mood, which felt awful. 

something about this identity stuck with me as i grew up. whenever i spilled something, i'd chuckle to myself and say, "long may she reign." but lately i've been realizing just how much spills and messes are simply something that happens sometimes, not a special idiosyncratic flaw of mine. 

i hope when we have kids, we can hold on to this ability to not cry over spilled radlers. i don't think it's the end of the world for a parent to get upset about a spill, but it sure does feel amazing to remain chill, and just clean up the mess and move on. 

the broken blood-orange radlers