A Holiday Mishap

I went to the local store yesterday. I had a few things on my list including a few Christmas items that I needed.

The roads already seem busier than usual, and the stores have become much more crowded as we head further into the holiday season.

I parked my car and headed into the store. I had a mix of things that I needed on my shopping list, but I first headed over to the seasonal aisle to get some Christmas tree ornaments and a new wreath for the front door.

Busy is an Understatement

The seasonal aisle was jam-packed with people. We all had carts and were just barely able to get by each other to search for what we wanted to find.

I started looking for Christmas ornaments. I saw so many beautiful ones. Many of them were covered in glitter and they made me happy just looking at them. There was a white elephant, gingerbread man, cupcake, snowman, and even a little deer. I picked up a few that I wanted, and I started going through the aisles to find the wreaths. I had to keep walking and I finally found another extension to the seasonal section.

Friendly Shoppers

Many of us were packed in this one particular aisle. A lady was waiting for an employee to help her get a beautiful, frosted Christmas tree off of the top shelf, we will call her, Nicole. She politely asked me if she was in the way, to which I answered, not at all. We struck up a conversation as she waited patiently for someone to help her. The tree was stunning, it was frosted and that made it look like it was covered in snow!

Next to me was an elderly lady whom we will call Maria, she ironically was in this aisle to get the same thing that I was looking for! Maria was going through all of the beautiful wreaths trying to make a decision. There were several different wreaths to choose from. As she was going through them, I was also keeping my eye on the wreaths to see which one I was going to buy!

What Just Happened!?

As Maria was going through the wreaths, her cart knocked into the metal rack holding them all together and about 10 of them came falling onto the floor! She looked around embarrassed and started picking them up one by one. I felt so bad for her.

I don’t think that she could see the hooks too well, because she was having trouble trying to put them back on the display. I bent down to help her pick up the fallen wreaths and then we heard loud beeping.

We got up and looked around, it was the forklift coming to get Nicole’s beautiful, frosted tree from the top shelf. The man on the forklift kindly asked us all to step aside as he made his way through. The wreaths lay all over the floor still as we pushed them out of the way for the forklift to get through.

A Good Laugh

Nicole was beaming after receiving the frosted tree! She was so happy, as this was the very last tree of that style left and it was all hers! It was a gorgeous tree, if I didn’t already have one, I would have wanted that one too. I said bye to her and then my focus was back on the floor.

Maria and I looked at each other and started laughing out of nowhere. What was once an embarrassing thing for her, there was happiness and that made me happy! We spent a few minutes picking up all of the wreaths and as we were, both of us picked out the wreath that we wanted. They were all similar, but each had a slightly different style and some different colors.

As we talked, I heard her say a few words in Spanish. You may remember that I am conversational in Spanish, so I decided to join in on the fun and the next thing you know, we were talking in a mix of English and Spanish!

A Good Conversation

I enjoyed this lady’s company. I have a fondness for the elderly. They are such a joy to talk with and learn from.

We talked about how we are excited about Christmas, and she mentioned that all of her grandkids are coming over and she wanted to have a beautiful wreath to welcome them at the door. I told her that it is amazing to see how children light up during the holidays. I have kids of my own and they bring so much to life during the holiday season!

l love it when unusual circumstances bring two strangers together. I love it when meeting others goes beyond the typical “hello, how are you?” I think it is a true gift when we can stop and talk with someone that we have never met.

A Big Thank You

Maria thanked me over and over again for helping her get the wreath display back together. She said that she was embarrassed and flustered at how she was going to put it all back together. It made me so happy that I was in the right place at the right time to help her. It brought joy to both of us.

I also was thankful to her. She showed me kindness and shared a little moment of her life with me!

Kindness goes a long way; it benefits both the giver and the receiver! I will think of Maria when I hang my wreath on the door this holiday season. Make sure to spread love and kindness wherever you can. Even a small gesture such as this one was something that someone else appreciated and that is what makes a difference!