Supermarket Surprise

I stopped at the market a while back to pick up a couple of things. As I headed toward the checkout, I was grateful to see just one woman in line. The man ahead of her was nearly finished checking out, and she had only a few items on the counter.

As I approached, the woman in line immediately said, “Come on up here, go ahead of me. Let me move my stuff so you can put yours down.” I thanked her and told her I appreciated her “spreading the love.”

Her face lit up. With a big smile, she said she tries to do that every day because she’s a Christian and wants to do what Christ would do. The cashier and the man ahead of us were listening and nodding as the woman continued: “Jesus doesn’t care what color you are, what language you speak, or what your gender is. He just doesn’t care. He loves us all just the same.”

That got a resounding “Yes!” from both the cashier and the man. We all exchanged Amens and Bless yous, chatted a little more, and went on our way, lifted by that miracle moment of shared goodness.

When I think about that chance encounter, it still makes me smile and warms my heart. I marvel at how I just happened to stop at that time, pick that line, and make one small comment to a stranger that opened the door for love right there at the supermarket.

Oh, I should mention, the woman in line was Black, the cashier was Asian, and the man was white as am I—and the day was Good Friday. Amen.