An act of holiday generosity during our busiest days of the year moved Barb to verse:
'Twas the day before Christmas,
And from noon until night
Double lines in the bookstore,
What a wondrous sight!
A curly-haired redhead,
Of perhaps fifteen or so,
Took his turn at the counter
And he seemed not to glow
Looking harried and nervous,
He reached into his coat
Bringing out crumpled money,
Scarcely like legal note
Nine dollars in cash
For a bill of twenty one
Try the rest on my bank card,
Hoping there was some
I tried once, I tried twice
In decreasing amounts
His cupboard was bare,
Nothing in his accounts
I saw his discomfort,
Also the burgeoning line
My lips formed this thought
You can get us next time
Then the strangest thing happened,
The woman behind
Had a ten in her hand
And a smile that was kind
Offered Here please take this!
That moment was fine!
And so thanks, dear, sweet lady
On behalf of us all,
That gesture was huge
Even if it was small
WOW! only in Guelph!
ReplyDeleteGreat story! Love both the idea that generosity and kindness from a stranger is alive and well AND that Guelph is still the kind of town where a local business decides to do the right thing and offer generosity and kindness as well! Just one of the many reasons why shopping downtown beats the mall any day of the week!
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