After about two months in recovery mode, I had an opportunity to go to the neighborhood Publix. It’s been a long time since I’ve been in a store, and I was happy to get out of the house and give wife Martha, The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage, a break.
There’s something about me that makes me want to bring a smile to someone sad. I’m not always successful, but I try.
I approached an older couple pushing a cart and said, “Pardon me, do you know who I am?” They looked at me confused and shook their heads.
The woman said, “No, I don’t know who you are.”
I smiled and replied, “That’s great. I thought I was the only one who didn’t know who I was. Thank you.”
As I walked away, I heard them giggle, and the man say, “He sure was crazy.”
I also noticed the store staff seemed stressed. The store was crowded with customers, particularly those at the checkout counter seemed extra frazzled.
I grinned as I waited in line, and finally, my turn came. I looked at the woman at the register and said, “There was a woman in the back of the store who told me if I mentioned how nice you look today, you could give me a discount.”
Then I smiled the biggest smile I had all day.
Looking at me, she said, “What?”
At first, she didn’t know what to do and looked over her shoulder to see if anybody was watching her. Then she finally looked at me and said, “Sir, I’m new here and have never heard of that discount before, and I don’t believe I can do it for you today. I’m so sorry for the misunderstanding.”
Then, much to my surprise, she smiled. After all, that’s all I wanted. I thanked her for her help, smiled, and told her to have a great day.
As I walked out, I could hear some customers behind me giggling. They were talking, but I couldn’t understand what they were saying. At least I got a couple of people to smile.
Driving home, the traffic was congested. There was some horn blowing and some disgruntled drivers. They must’ve had a hard day at work as it was late afternoon.
A couple of drivers looked a little religious in my mind. One person was pointing me to heaven. I smiled and was very appreciative. I nodded, affirming I was planning to go there.
I noticed, though, he’d mixed up his fingers and used the wrong one to point with.
My day was successful because I made about five people laugh and several others smile.
That brought one of my favorite Bible verses to mind.
“A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.”
— Proverbs 17: 22
Laughter is the best medicine we could have. And, we never run out of this medicine, no matter our circumstances. My goal is to share my medicine with as many people as possible.
Dr. Snyder is a former pastor who lives with the Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage, wife Martha, in Ocala, Fla. His email is [email protected].
