Empathy

We had to run out to Walmart this morning, and we had three things going against us - summer, Saturday, and 4th of July.  It was packed.  There were already lines at all the registers at 9:15 in the morning.  We got what we needed and got into a line with a cashier that I see on a regular basis.  She was almost done with the customer in front of us when something went wrong with her cash register.  Now she's a veteran so I know she knew what she was doing, but she couldn't get the thing to work.  My first thought was "Uh oh, now we're going to have to start over at the back of another line."  But right on the heels of that was sympathy for the cashier.  She had a look of panic on her face when she said "I can't get this to work and look at my line!".  Just then, one of the managers was walking by so she called her over, and like magic, with the touch of a button the register was all fixed!  She said "How did you do that?"  Jeff said to give the woman a cape and we all laughed.  Crisis averted.  She finished with the customer in front of us, and whisked us right on through.  As much as we're all in a hurry these days, it's so helpful to lighten things up with humor and kind words.  Jeff and I were dreading having to move to another line, but mostly, we tried to ease the cashier's stress.  I can't help but feel that God rewarded our efforts by sending that manager by at just the right time.  Patience with other people and empathy for them is something I strive for but am not always successful at, but today I think we got it right.  It felt really good, and that is where I found God today.