Simple Gifts

I am skilled at multi-tasking.  I'm eating ice cream straight from the carton while I write this.  Impressive, I know.  That, however, is not my subject for the night.  I hadn't planned on blogging tonight but a funny thing happened to me on the way out of Walmart. 

I finally went shopping.  I was waiting until the circulars came out and I had time to do some price matching.  It was finally time!  The house would be full of bread and bananas and jelly and actual peanut butter!  And then the hubby said he would be home a little late.  An hour late.  I didn't leave for Walmart until after 8 and didn't get home till almost 11.  Oh well.  At least I had the money to go grocery shopping! 

Now I know I'm not the only one who comp shops.  I know about the crazy coupon ladies out there.  I'm a newb when it comes to this game.  I know.  But come on!  Every sale item had vanished as if Cruella Deville had gotten in on the game and instead of puppies she wanted a hundred 99 cent bottles of pasta sauce.  Every corner I turned, expecting to find a deal there were only empty carboard boxes and plastic wrap that is the equivalent of supermarket tumbleweed.  But as I told my husband when he wondered where we would put all this food I brought home, "We will make it work." 

That's become my mantra until I get sick of it.  We will make it work.  We have three little kids in a two bedroom apartment.  We will make it work.  He's going to pick up a second job to help with the bills.  We will make it work.  We have to.  Or we could sit around and be mad about whatever situation comes our way.  I've done it.  It doesn't fix the problem. 

Rabbit hole.  Sorry.  The point of my story.  So I'm new at this thing and don't have Walmart's policies down pat.  Just in case you don't know, they don't do BOGO.  As I'm reading this I can see in my mind on the policies page where this is written.  Didn't remember that in the store though!  Murfin's has Kellogg's cereals for buy one, get one free.  Now, we don't buy name brand cereals unless there is a birthday or Christmas coming up but this was a sale so I went for it.  Plus, my oldest has been sick and he asked me specifically to pick up the white squares cereal.  That's code for Frosted Mini-Wheats.  I plunked it down on the checkout belt and was tempted to shout out, "Bogo!" at the top of my lungs but chickened out.  Instead, I cooly motioned to them and announced that they were buy one get one free at Murfin's.  The cashier then gave me the sad news and asked if I wanted them anyway.  Knowing we still had some Toasty O's or whatever at home, I shrugged and said, "No thanks.  Maybe next time," and went on with the next items. 

One of the maddening things about Walmart is their tendency to have only one or two lanes open at night.  I didn't get to the checkout line till 10:00.  There was a regular line, the cigarette line and a speedy checkout open.  Multiple people saw my mass of groceries, scowled and went in search of another register.  I was apparently such a problem that they opened the register next to me.  As Gilly would say, "Sorry!" 

This one man, though, apparently had no place urgent to get to and jovially waited while I tried to make jokes with the cashier, who was nice as well considering, by this time, we had spent so much time together we were about to swap photos of our children.  He commented on the diapers and asked how many little ones I had at home.  The final total was announced and the man behind me cheered, "I'm impressed!"  I smiled back and only half-joked, "I'm exhausted!"  I gathered my bags and my strength, wished everyone a good night, and heaved the cart towards the door. 

Just as I picked up speed (after the paper towels fell out from the bottom) in the parking lot, I heard, "You forgot these!"  It was the man behind me from the checkout line.  I figured it was one of my bags and started to thank him and apologize but then I looked and saw two boxes of brand name cereal.  "Oh gosh, thank you so much!"  He's already running away at this point and shouts over his shoulder, "It's a gift!  From the Lord!" 

It's not like this is my first gift from strangers.  But usually it is in the form of things I need.  The essentials, diapers, food, clothes, etc.  I remember way back when the lady at Aldi's paid for my groceries when I went over.  She was just going to pay for the part that I was over and then she demanded to pay the whole thing!  Something as simple as cereal.  Nothing we needed.  Nothing we couldn't live without.  Just a simple reminder that God loves to give his kids good things.  It's like when my husband brings home ice cream for the kids or flowers for me and the little ladybug.  Just a reminder that we are unordinarily loved.    Thank you, cereal superhero.  For the reminder that I am so blessed.  My cart, and my heart, overfloweth!  And, yeah, I know that was cheesy!