The Gift

The man lived alone, no family, very few friends. He had no worldly wealth and did not really want any. He was content to live on the meager salary he was paid digging trenches for a plumbing contractor. There had never been a woman in his life except his mother and she had died two years prior. He missed her and of course his father too.

He always did his weekly grocery shopping at the same store and always went at the same time on Saturday evenings. The store was always quiet and very few people around. He figured everybody was out on the town or home with loved ones so it suited him to go at that time. One evening as he was selecting his items and filling is cart he noticed a woman desperately trying to reach for something on a high shelf. He wondered why the shelves were so high as surely they knew not all the customers would be tall enough to reach them. He offered to give her a hand and she gratefully accepted. After retrieving her item he took notice of the woman's face and appearance. She was quite stunning and impeccably dressed. He could tell she most likely was well off. He felt a little insecure in his work clothes, still dirty from the day's work. His hands were rough and also not as clean as he would have liked for this moment. He handed her the item and she thanked him. He tipped his cap and acknowledged her.

As they continued to shop they seemed to meet in every aisle. She smiled and he returned the smile. He thought what a pleasant woman, someone I'd like to know. But the reality of their differences told him to just keep moving and say nothing just as he had done all his life. He was uneducated, learned about life simply by living it. No knowledge from books, his reading skills were slight at best and he barely made it beyond grade school. He imagined her to be well educated and refined, not someone to whom he could converse with on an intellectual level. It made him a little self-conscious.

In the last aisle the woman asked him for his help once again. He of course was more than happy to help her. He grabbed the item she indicated and he put it into her cart. Again she thanked him and they started to head for the checkout counter. She asked him his name, to which he responded, "Jim". She held out her hand and told him her name was Karen. He hesitated to touch her with his dirty hands and she must have sensed his reluctance. She reached down and grabbed his hand anyway and shook it. She smiled at him and said it was a pleasure to meet him. He told her the pleasure was all his and asked if she lived in the neighborhood as he did. She replied that she did. She told him she had recently moved there because it was close to her doctor. She also told him she was battling a disease that required numerous doctor visits as well as treatment, even perhaps surgery.

His heart sank, and he felt such sorrow for this woman. He noticed no wedding rings and wondered if she was facing this alone. He did not want to pry so he said nothing. He told her that if there was anything he could do for her or help her with she should not hesitate to ask. He was always there at the store every Saturday night at this same time. She smiled and thanked him and told that was kind of him to offer. They paid for their groceries and left.

In the following weeks they met several times at the grocery store always having a kind word to say to each other but nothing more than that. One evening several weeks later he saw her shopping and noticed something was very different about the way she looked. She seemed very tired and very frail and her hair just did not look like her own. He commented to her that he noticed she had changed her hair style and then she told him it was a wig. She had undergone chemotherapy and had lost her hair. He was heartbroken that this woman had to endure such a thing, especially if she was in fact doing it alone. They shopped together this night and talked more than usual. She was so pleasant and her voice so soft and gentle had a certain sorrow in its tone.

He finally got the courage to ask her if she was married and she said no, her husband had passed away several years earlier. She then told him she would be going into the hospital the next week for some tests and possible surgery such that she might not see him next Saturday. She would most likely be home recouping from the surgery. She would most likely have to put off her shopping until later in the week. As they left the store he got an idea, although he was unsure if it was the proper thing to do he decided to follow her to see where she lived. He felt like he was invading her privacy but he wanted to do something for her and thought if he asked she would not tell him and maybe even be frightened. He discreetly followed and wrote the address down then proceeded home. He was sure she did not notice him.

The following Saturday she was not in the store. It was time to set the plan in motion. Having spent time with her he knew some of the things she usually purchased so he pushed two carts that evening and shopped for them both. When he finished he went to the courtesy desk and asked if they had delivery services. Indeed they did so he asked if it was too late to have groceries delivered. He explained the situation to the manager to which he said normally they would not deliver that late but in this case they would make an exception. The man gave him the address and hoped the woman was in fact home resting. The delivery was made.

The following Saturday they met again while shopping and the woman said nothing regarding the incident. He was glad really because he still felt a little guilty about following her to get her address. It seemed better to him if she never knew how and where the groceries came from. He inquired about her hospital stay and subsequent recovery. She explanied all that had occurred and still offered no hint bout the groceries. He felt relieved he had pulled it off. As they left the store that evening she asked him if he had eaten that night and he said no he hadn't. She invited him to her house to have supper with her and said be there at 8:00. He asked if she could give him directions, not wanting her to know he had been there before. She turned to him and winked and said there is no need to pretend. I know you followed me two weeks ago. His face became red and he looked down at the pavement and apologized for doing such a sneaky thing, would she forgive him. She said to him, "I've just invited you to supper, I do not think there is anything to forgive."

These two people from very different walks of life were able to find common ground that bound them together for the remainder of their lives. Compassion, understanding, faith, respect and most importantly love. To love and be loved far outweighs all differences great or small. She recovered completely in the weeks and months ahead and they both provided the companionship that each desired.

The ability to love is God's greatest gift to man. Don't just tell your loved ones you love them, show them.