Inadvertently harming others

Colleagues,

I had an interesting interaction with my feline friend Wax this morning.
 
He gets very demanding at mealtime. I never appreciate his “eagerness,” especially when he makes it hard for me to pour the food into his bowl. I was already a bit grumpy, and I pushed him back aggressively, and yelled at him.
 
I put the food noisily and haphazardly into his bowl so that he knew I was not happy.
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Of course, he jumped to the food bowl to begin eating as I stood up, but as I began leaving the kitchen, Wax ran over to me and meowed, looking me right in the eyes. He was disturbed by our interaction, and he needed some reassurance that our relationship was still okay. A bit of petting, gentle talking and meowing, and we were back on good terms. Wax headed back to his food.

If Wax was a colleague at work, would he have sought me out? If not, I would have moved on with my day, unaware of the harm I had done.
 
At some point it would become obvious that our relationship was damaged, but by then I would not even remember the incident.
 
Small interactions that we may not think anything of have an on impact our relationships with others. Next time you are especially stressed or grumpy, remember that not all of your colleagues will be as forgiving as Wax.
 
Do good and be well,
 
Frederick