By Stephen C. Schultz
I walked in the door at home after a long day of work and made my way to the kitchen when my cell phone rang. It was my wife, calling from the doctor’s office. She mentioned that my 14-year-old daughter had an infection and needed antibiotics. She told me the doctor’s office had just called in the prescription to a Walgreens store down the street. I wasn’t excited to leave the house again, but I turned around, grabbed my keys, slipped my shoes back on, and headed out the door.
I pulled into the parking lot and got out of my car. My short walk across the lot was met with a welcome blast of cool air as I stepped through the automatic doors. Even though the kids were back in school, it was still summer as far as the weather was concerned. Once inside, I made my way to the back corner of the store, where the pharmacy was, halfheartedly noticing the nondescript music playing overhead.
As I rounded the corner of the aisle, I was met with a line of about ten people. I stepped through with brief eye contact and a soft “Excuse me” to the woman in line with her young daughter. As I sauntered to the back of the line, I tried to assess the circumstances that had created this backup at the pharmacy. I thought to myself that maybe these folks were just getting off work, like I was, and stopping to pick up their prescriptions on the way home.
I stood there fidgeting, mumbling under my breath about how I always seemed to end up in the longest line. How restaurants never seemed too busy—until I walked through the door. And once inside, suddenly, there was an hour-long wait! I thought about how the cars on the freeway always seemed to be moving—except for the lane I was in, which was at a dead stop. And don’t even get me started on the grocery store!
After about fifteen minutes—an eternity when you're standing in line—I noticed a woman at the counter who seemed to be purchasing a lot of items. The lovely woman behind the counter was doing her best to match the number of items to the amount of money the customer had. Items were being subtracted and then added back on—personal hygiene products, a couple of clothing items, and things for her two children standing beside her. It was clear she was struggling to calculate the total in her head. She only had a twenty-dollar bill, but the items kept adding up to more than $20. This was the holdup. This was why the line was so long.
Then, I saw something unexpected. A woman in line—the same woman I had stepped past when I first arrived—moved to the counter. She quietly mentioned that she would be willing to help. She pulled out her credit card and had the Walgreens cashier ring up all the items. The total came to $45 and some change. Without hesitation, she paid it forward.
The woman and her daughters thanked her, gathered their bags, and walked away.
It was one of those moments that bolsters your faith in humanity. It also gave me an opportunity to reflect on what I would have done. Would I have stepped forward and helped this woman by purchasing her items? Do I pay attention to those around me, or am I too caught up in my own thoughts and tasks? How often do we find ourselves in situations like this—opportunities to pay it forward, offering kindness to total strangers in their time of need?
May we all be on the lookout for those moments when we can pay it forward with kindness.
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