On the Other Hand

I was standing on the trail in the Ruby Mountains, waiting for my wife to catch up...somehow a family of hikers had got between us. As I stood on the lower end of a switchback, one of the teenagers the hiking family hopped off the trail and short cut the switchback right in front of me--almost into my arms--slipping and sliding in the dust.

"What the hell are you doing?" I yelled at him. "Have you seen all the signs up here asking you to stay on the trail?"

No answer.

"Can you read? Why do you think they put all those logs in the short cut? You destroy the trail that way."

No answer.

I shook my head with disgust and started hiking down the trail.

I heard the rest of the story from my wife, later on. The young man rejoined his family, where his dad immediately asked:" What the hell were you doing?"

"That's what that other guy said..."

Yes it was. Hopefully, he got the message from both directions.