A Grocery Store Encounter

I was at the grocery store yesterday — my stock of tea at the office is much diminished and needed replenishment — and, like usual, I asked the cashier, an older woman, probably in her sixties, how she was. (When I say, “like usual,” it’s a habit born of years of retail. I try not to be a grumpy and disinterested customer, especially this time of year.)

“I’m tired,” she said, as she started scanning my items. (Besides two boxes of tea, there were antacid tablets, a bottle of diet cream soda, and a jug of windshield wiper fluid.)

I nodded. “I can understand that,” I said.

She looked at me. “I’m blessed.”

Wait. What did she say? What did I hear?

Some confusion clearly played on my face. “Wait, did you say ‘blessed’? That you’re blessed?”

“Yes,” she said. “I’m blessed.”

I had absolutely no idea to respond to that. I nodded, smiled, and said, quickly. “Yes, yes, blessed. Yes, that’s a good thing. I’m glad.”

She wished me a good evening when the transaction was finished. I wished her a Merry Christmas. Those exact words, despite my well-known reputation for being a heathen.

I still have no idea how to respond to “I’m blessed.”

Published by Allyn

A writer, editor, journalist, sometimes coder, occasional historian, and all-around scholar, Allyn Gibson is the writer for Diamond Comic Distributors' monthly PREVIEWS catalog, used by comic book shops and throughout the comics industry, and the editor for its monthly order forms. In his over ten years in the industry, Allyn has interviewed comics creators and pop culture celebrities, covered conventions, analyzed industry revenue trends, and written copy for comics, toys, and other pop culture merchandise. Allyn is also known for his short fiction (including the Star Trek story "Make-Believe,"the Doctor Who short story "The Spindle of Necessity," and the ReDeus story "The Ginger Kid"). Allyn has been blogging regularly with WordPress since 2004.

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