What Goes Around

At Great Bridge Va. I stepped into a Dollar Store looking for “missing you” cards and stickers to send to my little grandchildren back in Michigan. While waiting in the check out lane I couldn’t help but notice the young man behind me loaded up with an arm full of candy. “Are you stocking up for Halloween, or are you planning to eat all of that yourself?” I asked. “No” he replied. “It’s all for me.” And I thought he was joking until he added “I’ve got stage 4 cancer--melanoma and lymphatic. So I think--what the hell?”

I was mortified at my insensitive blunder, but at that point the cashier began demanding money and attention was thankfully diverted elsewhere. Unfortunately the young man found he didn’t have enough to cover his expenses. I fumbled in my purse, found $1.34 and offered it to him. He graciously accepted and the situation was resolved. We continued talking outside the store and he showed me a long scar in his armpit where his lymph glands had been removed. He told me he was only 37 but had come to terms with his fate. We hugged and went our separate ways--he with his bagful of candy and me with tears in my eyes.

My next stop was the grocery store where, once I had managed to pull myself together, I began loading up on supplies for the boat. As I stood in front of the yogurt display wondering how I was ever going to manage to get everything back to the boat single handed, the woman beside me struck up a conversation. I learned that her name was Barbara and that we had much in common. Like me, she too was an artist and, as I had done, she too was hoping to open a bed and breakfast. As we were about to part ways she paused, looked at my load of groceries and asked if she could give me a lift back to the boat. And of course I accepted, gracefully.

At the check out counter the cashier told me that this was my lucky day. The store was giving double gas coupons to its customers and because of my large purchase, mine would be considerable. Having no need of gas coupons aboard a sailboat, I offered them to my new friend. But when the cashier handed me a .49 cent voucher, I felt a little sheepish passing on so little to Barbara as gas money. She only laughed and said “You don’t understand. The coupon is for .49 cents off EVERY gallon of gas that you buy! My husband will be thrilled to get this. Now he can fill up the tanks on our boat and save a really substantial amount of money.” And she graciously accepted my gift. We then piled our assorted purchases into her SUV, drove back to the boat, chatted some more and exchanged cards--promising to keep in touch until her B&B was up and running.

It’s funny how life works out. I offered a small kindness to the young man with cancer and was unexpectedly rewarded with a free lift home. And then that small kindness was in turn repaid by a gift of free gas. All within a one hour time frame. I guess that the old adage is really true after all--”what goes around, comes around.”

So far along this journey south we’ve run into only two old friends from 2007, Ed and Eva aboard their boat “Makai.” But it’s really easy to forge new relationships and make a difference, no matter how small, if you’re willing to step out of your own little shell and put yourself out there. We will miss our old boat buddies aboard “Salty Goose” who are opting to continue explorations along the coast of Maine this year. But we keep in touch with them by Single Side Band Radio and know that new friends are always just beyond the next bend in the river. We have also begun to realize that

“If you can’t be

with the ones you love

then

love the ones you’re with”

This is a really good piece of advice--from a totally unexpected source and taken platonically of course. And if we ALL did that, at every moment of the day, with whomever we happen to be with, perhaps the world would be a happier place.