Leaving the supermarket tonight, I was asked by a young man if I could "help him out with a gallon of gas." He was fairly well dressed and quite polite. He got my attention by saying "excuse me sir." When he asked me to help him with a gallon of gas, I had many thoughts flying through my brain with how to respond. Do I tell him about my financial situation? I could go on and on about the expenses of owning a home, 2 vehicles and raising 4 kids. I bet he doesn't realize how much money I have spent at Sam's Club on food, formula, diapers and wipes for twins over the last year and a half. Summer camps, clothes and sports ain't cheap. Or, I could have helped him by giving directions to the nearest filling station, after all, Publix doesn't sell gas. I thought about telling him if he is looking for a job, I did not work there. He would have to go inside to apply. Perhaps I could have screamed him down and reported him to store management so they could ask him to leave the property. One thought that didn't enter my mind was seeing if I had the $2.849 needed to get a gallon of gas. Although it could have been fun telling him I was trying to find 9/10ths of a cent in my change cup. No, I decided to reward him with a response matching the same manners he showed me. I replied "No, but thank you for asking." He gave an odd look. He looked a little befuddled. He obviously hadn't been prepared for such a polite response and didn't know how to continue his sales pitch. He walked on to a couple leaving the store. I hope he does well. Lord knows we could all use help with a gallon of gas these days.
No comments:
Post a Comment