Last weekend my eldest daughter and I spent a couple hours running errands while spending quality time together. I am not a big shopper, in fact, I desperately loathe the idea of having to find a parking space, running through the store to obtain items in what I consider to be a timely fashion (the sooner I'm out of the store, the better), only to stand in line and wait on slow people or slow cashiers. I'd rather purchase my all of my items online if I could, but then I'd miss all the fun waiting in lines and dealing with the occasional rude, obnoxious person.
My daughter, on the other hand, quite enjoys the shopping experience although I cannot understand why. I suppose through the eyes of a 10 year-old, going to Target to find some items might be fun because she could "window shop" and dream about things she would like to purchase. I have always had the mindset, ever since I was a young child, that window-shopping is a bust because if you don't have money, then why in the world are you wasting your time at the store when you plan to buy absolutely nothing?!?
Anyway, after purchasing a few necessary items at Target, my daughter and I walked out to our car. As I was placing the bags on the backseat, I noticed a white mini-van parked a few spaces over. There were two hand-written signs taped to the van which read, "Help a needy family." With the side door opened, I saw two unkept children sitting in their car seats. The parents looked worn as well and it seemed that this family was indeed needy. However, I'm a natural skeptic and although we have not seen good economic times recently, I still believe there will always be people who will take advantage of a situation for their own benefit. I decided that maybe these people were such the case, thus we jumped into our truck and drove away.
I didn't drive too far though because I felt a nagging tug/pain in my heart. I thought that maybe these people were truly in need. It wasn't too long ago that my family benefitted from the hands of anonymous people in church. My husband and I had not had jobs for roughly 18 months but God provided through our retirement funds and some odd jobs that did not pay much, but did offere some sort of compensation to meet a phone bill or other lesser bills. What would my family have done in November and December of 2009 had not some people placed Walmart giftcards into my husband's suit pocket? I thought of God's grace and provision via strangers and I turned my truck around.
I did not have much cash but I figured some was better than none. My daughter asked me what we were doing and I asked her if she had seen the white mini-van that was parked close to our truck. She answered, "Yes, I did, Mommy. I felt bad for them. Are we going to help?" Her remarks only further confirmed that I needed to give what I could to try and assist this family in any way possible. If I had purchased diapers, I would have given some and had I purchased any food, I would have given that away too. But, alas, I had purchased a birthday gift which did not seem helpful for the family.
I drove up to the strangers and told them I noticed their sign, that I could not help much, but I was willing to give what little I had. I handed them some cash, as well as a tract to our church, and I told them I hoped things would get better for them. The faces of the father and mother lit up to display toothless grins but also an attitude of gratitude. They thanked me profusely, gave each other a hug, and began to read what I had given. My daughter smiled and told me that we had done the right thing and she hoped they could use both the money and the tract.
I realize there are people out there who seek to obtain without working or try to take advantage of people's kindness, but for that day, I honestly feel my daughter and I did the right thing. As parents, we are definitely role models for our children. If we want our children to grow to be kind and respectful toward others, we need to model that exact behavior. Giving to strangers who are less fortunate is a good lesson for all. I pray that my children will be sensitive to the needs around them and I pray that I can be an excellent example of how to give. I'm thankful for the opportunity presented that day where I could model kindness, giving, and respect.
