One blustery and cold Sunday in Advent, I stopped at the Everyday Convenience Store on the way home from church. I had a migraine, and after the medication, the best thing to drink is a Coke! But the best Coke is Mexican coke, made with sugar, and in a glass bottle. The Everyday carries it and is right on my route. So, I stopped. As I was in line to pay, I watched the young man behind the counter as he took care of his customers. He was upbeat, friendly, and took his time with each person. Some of them seemed as though they might be down on their luck. He joked with each person, and then said, “Make sure you stay warm today.” When I got to the counter, he said, “Ah. You know the real deal. Coke made with sugar AND in a glass bottle.” I laughed and said I was glad to meet a connoisseur. When I paid, there were pennies for the change, and I said that I would just give another dollar. “You don’t need to do that.” He looked into my change purse, and then added pennies from the jar to make it right, all done with fun and a smile. I said to him, “I bet people come here just to see you and get a smile.” He told me that, while he didn’t want to toot his own horn, he thought that I was right. “Everyone who comes through here has a story to tell, and I just want to give them a better day.” My day was so much better having been in his presence for just that short while.
“Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God’s kindness: kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile.” - Mother Teresa
Jesus was sent here as a fully human being. Therefore, we are aware that he knew what it was like to be human. He knew, and God knows, about our struggles to be important, to be successful, our need for security and control. But Jesus came to tell us how to live in a different way. That God is love, and every moment of our day is an opportunity to be the living expression of God’s kindness.
We think that we will change the world in the big moments. The signing of treaties, the vote in Congress. That the opportunity to make a difference will come with a neon sign, and perhaps a band. And yes, these large actions are important. But truly, the changes that will shake the earth come to us in quiet: from the birth in the stable, to the kind man at the convenience store.
Susan Garsoe
