'Some people!' snorted a man standing behind me in the
long line at the grocery store.

'You would think the manager would pay attention and
open another line, 'said a woman. I looked to the front of
the line to see what the hold up was and saw a well
dressed, young woman, trying to get the machine to
accept her credit card. No matter how many times she
swiped it, the machine kept rejecting it.

'It's one of them welfare card things. Damn people need
to get a job like everyone else,' said the man standing
behind me. The young woman turned around to see who
had made the comment. 'It was me,' he said, pointing to
himself.

The young lady's face began to change expression. Now
almost in tears, she dropped the welfare card onto the
counter and quickly walked out of the store. Everyone in
the checkout line watched as she began running to her
car. Never looking back, she got in and drove away.

After developing cancer in 1977 and having had to use
food stamps; I had learned never to judge anyone,
without knowing the circumstances of their life. This
turned out to be the case today.

Several minutes later a young man walked into the store.
He went up to the cashier and asked if she had seen the
woman. After describing her, the cashier told him that she
had run out of the store, got into her car, and drove away.

'Why would she do that?' asked the man. Everyone in
the line looked around at the fellow who had made the
statement. 'I made a stupid comment about the welfare
card she was using. Something I shouldn't have said.
I'm sorry,' said the man.

'Well, that's bad, real bad, in fact. Her brother was killed
in Afghanistan two years ago. He had three young children
and she has taken on that responsibility. She's twenty
years old, single, and now has three children to support,'
he said in a very firm voice.

'I'm really truly sorry. I didn't know,' he replied, shaking both
his hands about.

The young man asked, 'Are these paid for?' pointing to the
shopping cart full of groceries. 'It wouldn't take her card,' the
clerk told him.

'Do you know where she lives?' asked the man who had
made the comment.

'Yes, she goes to our church.'

'Excuse me,' he said as he made his way to the front of the
line. He pulled out his wallet, took out his credit card and told
the cashier, 'Please use my card. PLEASE!' The clerk took
his credit card and began to ring up the young woman's tally.

Hold on,' said the gentleman. He walked back to his shopping
cart and began loading his own groceries onto the belt to be
included. 'Come on people. We got three kids to help raise!'
he told everyone in line. Everyone began to place their own
groceries onto the fast moving belt. A few customers began
bagging the food and placing it into separate carts. 'Go back
and get two big turkeys,' yelled a heavyset woman, as she
looked at the man. 'NO,' yelled the man. Everyone stopped
dead in their tracks. The entire store became quiet for several
seconds. 'Four turkeys,' yelled the man. Everyone began
laughing and went back to work.

When all was said and done, the man paid $1,646.57 for the
groceries. He then walked over to the side, pulled out his
check book, and began writing a check using the bags of
dog food piled near the front of the store for a writing
surface. He turned around and handed the check to the
young man.

'She will need a freezer and a few other things as well,' he
told the man.

The young man looked at the check and said, 'This is really
very generous of you.'

'No,' said the man. 'Her brother was the generous one.'

Everyone in the store had been observing the commotion
and began to shout and clap. And I drove home that day
feeling very American.