Is It Rude?

Lemuel has a situation.

He has a friend who only calls him when the friend has a few minutes in the car. The friend usually calls with a problem and once Lemuel has shared some thoughts the friend has arrived at his destination and terminates the conversation. This has been going on for a few years now. The friend and Lemuel live hundreds of miles apart so they don’t see each other. Lemuel said to me, “Bob, I know this sounds like complaining, but this bothers me. If we are friends doesn’t it make sense that we should make time for each other and have actual conversations that don’t revolve around a problem?”

Lemuel asked, “Would it be rude if the next time he calls I say, ‘Frank, it’s really good to hear from you. Do you have time to talk right now? If you are in a hurry, and if your time is limited, I’d really like us to schedule another time to talk so that we can really connect.’”