I tend to think in stories. Whether I conjure up an elaborate tale about why the couple in front of me at Costco is purchasing 10 boxes of gummy bears, 3 vats of mayonnaise, and one rotisserie chicken…(birthday party serving gummies and chicken salad heavy on the mayo?) or the everyday share-at-the-kitchen table stuff I find funny and priceless.
My sharing moment happened while browsing through the ice cream aisle on New Year’s Eve:
Obviously, in the same mindset as other shoppers on the last day of the year, my handheld basket weighed heavily as I slid the “healthy” dark chocolate, cheese and crackers aside to make room for the “buy one get one free” ice cream. After all, we all ran, swam or biked today and it IS the last day of the year. And WHAT IF I decide to start 2020 as a vegan? Best to splurge now.
As I squinted at the ingredients on the ice cream boxes (font sizes are getting smaller as I get older), I heard a joyful “Hi, Mrs. Cahill!”. I turned away from the sea of Rocky Road and recognized a sweet, scrappy second grader I had in a class I subbed for last month. I said hello and he gave me one of those genuine seven-year-old smiles that double as a hug without even trying.
His mom called him over and I heard, “Oh mom, she was my sub one day at school”.
“Which woman?” asked his mom.
He quickly replied, “Not the old one.”
I quickly glanced around and saw one other woman in the aisle who embraced her gray hair more boldly than I…
Finally! I WASN’T THE OLD ONE!
You see, for years I thought I was the youngest in most groups. Then one day as I looked around the room at a PTA meeting, I realized I was most certainly the only one who could identify a VCR, rotary phone and the fleeting existence of an eight-track system (pre-cassette tape). But this time folks, I WASN’T THE “OLD ONE”!
So that’s my moment. Quick. Memorable. Heart-warming and one I’ll log in my memory when I need a chuckle and a little ego boost only a second grader can deliver.
What was your memorable moment today?
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