I despise Walmart. Absolutely despise it. My blood pressure rises 10 digits and my heart rate doubles at the mere thought of having to go in the store. Before I’ve gone down one row in the parking lot, I’m already imagining Sunday morning and the multiple trips that I’ll need to make down to the altar in order to redeem myself.
We had to go to Walmart this past Friday night. It was raining cats and dogs. People can’t drive. People can’t park. It was hard to find a handicapped spot for Preston near the front. Preston was slower than I wanted him to be. We get inside and I shake off like the wet dog I feel like. I can’t find a buggy that doesn’t need a front end repair or at least an alignment. There are no electronic wheelchairs, of course. When I do find a buggy, it’s got what appears to be have the last shopper’s snotty kid’s remnants left behind.
I just had my butt on my shoulders and my panties in a wad. I was ready to get in and accomplish my mission and get out.
I take my buggy and patiently wait my turn to get the sterile wipes that are a must have. I grab a handful and wipe the cart handles down. I take off to accomplish my mission. I notice that Preston is not with me. I stop thinking he’ll catch up. Nope. I retrace my steps and find him. He’s literally right where I left him. At the wipe dispenser container.
You see, when I got my wipes, the container was wide open and the dispenser was not attached. I just reached in got what I wanted. Preston was now at that dispenser, meticulously fixing it. Taking the time to run the wipe roll through the little mechanism that would dispense one sheet at a time…. and save Walmart a few pennies.
My panties were still in that wad and I aggravatedly asked him what in the world was he doing to which he replied “I’m fixing this”. To which I, even more frustrated, replies “WHY?!?”. His reply knocked me off my self righteous queen of the day throne.
”Because it’s the right thing to do.”
Here’s a 6’5 man that’s life went from being a 6 figure well respected white collar executive to a disabled man who depends on social security and disability income and struggles to remember his wife’s name some days. He suffers from brain damage, dementia, diabetes, balance problems, and so much more. It’s a struggle for him to get out in the rain, deal with rude people (like me) and see two of everything. He takes more pills a day than the local drug dealer probably has in stock.
Yet, it was the “right thing to do” for him to fix something he saw broken.
I’m going to tell you that God uses this man every single day to teach me valuable lessons. Every single day. We need to slow down, stop, and fix the broken things in our paths….. even when it’s not “our” problem. You just might be a blessing to somebody and you never know who is watching.
My hubby certainly blesses me. Every single day. I truly want to be more like him. He has the best soul of any heartbeat that walks this earth.
Hope you enjoyed.
Until next time,
The buttheaded beancounter
Praying With My Eyes Wide Open 