So much for a quick trip in and out for milk. A young man in the grocery store parking lot just asked me to buy him some beer. Of course my dilemma was not deciding whether to do it, it was deciding how to handle the situation delicately. He was probably my kids age, so I immediately thought of that. But I was also once his age and could relate there too. I thwarted gut instinct to throw the book at him and decided on an honest approach. We ended up talking for 40 min...and it was a real give/take/question/answer kind of exchange. Bottom line was: He was hurting and wanted it to go away. I told him that in my experience, a drink never went deep enough to wash away the hurt that I carried and gave him some other possible options. His eyes were wide and his ears were open. I hope his heart got what I was sending. As I watched him drive away empty handed but somewhat ok with that, I was glad that I was the one he asked. It was not an inconvenience. It was a privilege. I call such things God shots. Gonna have me a shot of milk.
Posted on: Sun, 27 Apr 2014 19:08:55 +0000