Never assume!

 In writing and in life never assume that everyone knows what you know. That is why it is important for writers to "show and not tell" the reader what is happening in the book. Recently this concept slipped into my every day life. After growing tired of my wallet being punished by the grocery delivery service fees I decided to try using curbside pick up. After driving to the store I parked in the pick up area and called to let the store know that I was there. After a few minutes the curbside delivery person rolled the cart up to my pickup. I asked for the clerk to load the groceries into the back of the truck. I even explained how to open the cap. (rotate the handle) The clerk walked to the back of the truck and stood staring at the back end. A minute later another store employee walked up to help the first clerk and both ended up pulling on handles and staring. I ended up getting out of the truck and opening the back end. 

It would be easy to dismiss the event as a faux pas and move on. But, there is something to be learned here. We live in a highly automated world and my F-150 with its paint matched cap over the bed probably looks a lot like a Ford Expedition that it shares its frame with. The clerk no doubt thought that just touching the handles would lead to the back of the vehicle opening as if by magic. My explaining that the handle needed to be turned was not enough to over come the clerk's lack of knowledge or experience with a pickup truck in a world filled with crossovers and SUVS. Not everyone knows what we do. That's why we need to step back and with humility show not tell.