Giving.

A simple trip to Walmart transformed my day. It was raining out and I was in a hurry, so I parked my truck all the way at the back of the lot and ran for it. As I ran toward the doors I worried about my shoes getting wet so I skipped through every possible puddle as fast as I could. I was there to pick up three specific things, oreos, bread, and I needed to print some pictures. I only had $10 to spend so it was in and out. What a silly trip to the store right? The pictures were the main reason, I needed them for tonight.

As I walked into the store I saw a man asking for pop cans near the bottle return. He assured everyone that he just needed money for some food, as he was hungry and stated that he was homeless. My timing was perfect, I caught the entire encounter. There were three people returning cans, and no one replied to him. I caught his glance for a brief moment and then went in route to the photo department as I reminded myself I had a time limit.. I only printed five pictures, but during that entire ten minutes I sat there thinking of the blank stares the man had gotten. It upset me.

Three things. Pictures, oreos, and bread. I had the pictures done and contemplated the rest. Did I need a $3 package of oreos or a $4 loaf of multigrain bread? I thought to myself, I only have $10 to spend. I put down the oreos and the bread. I went over to the deli and bought what I could for the man instead. Chicken strips, mac and cheese, and mashed potatoes. In that moment I didn't think of myself, I thought of this man. This man I didn't even know. He was hungry, and I trusted that. As I checked out I realized I had spent everything but .79 of the $10. Wow. Perfect.

I knew he would still be there, I just knew. As I walked up to him I was scared. I knew I wanted to help him, but this was something I had never done before. My grandmother would yell "STRANGER DANGER!" if she could see me now. I simply told him I had seen how the people at the bottle return had treated him, and I was concerned that he wouldn't have dinner tonight. His eyes started to tear up and I began to worry I had offended him. I stopped talking. He looked at me and said, "Thank you so much. You are an angel. I haven't seen kindness like yours in weeks." He then hugged me, which was extremely awkward as we were standing in the exit area. I assured him things would get better, he just needed to take it a day at time and find his passion in life. Wishing him a good evening I then left.

I walked the long stretch of parking lot to my truck, I didn't run. The entire time I had this grin on face, yet it was mixed with sadness. I didn't worry about my shoes getting wet, or how I was in a crunch for time. There were just a few tears that ran down my cheek when I drove away. Tears of gratefulness non the less.  I never thought a trip to the store alone in a crunch for time could deliver so much.