A connection between us

By Jeff Becraft

I went to Walmart this week… twice in one day. I had to get the quota in.

I don’t get as much of a quota as I used to at the Plastic Palace. Used to, it would be three times per week. Now, I just wait till the list gets really long, and then I go and get what I’m looking for all in one shot.

While I was in there on Wednesday, there was a woman stocking shelves. She was working hard… and she had the blue vest on… and I simply said to her, “Thank you for the job you’re doing.” To which she responded, “Well, thank you for saying that… I’m glad someone appreciates it.”

Obviously, this woman doesn’t get told that very much.

What I want to throw out to us to ponder is – when we go anywhere and we come in contact with other people, do we see them? Or are they just part of the landscape? Are we thinking that they are just there doing their job and I’m in here on my own mission?

I had a pretty long list, since I don’t get my weekly quota in like I used to. Do we take the time to acknowledge the work that people are doing there? Because if they don’t do the work, what I’m looking for is not going to be on the shelf.

I was then entering another part of the store and I see a current Army gentleman. I just say, “Thank you for what you do for our country.” He responds back in a very genuine and appreciative way, “Thank you for saying that. It is a privilege and honor to serve.”

I then wind up clear on the other side of the store in the grocery section. I run across a much older gentleman who is a Vietnam vet. (Those guys were treated terribly when they came home.) We were kind of walking parallel down the aisle and I simply said, “Sir, thank you for what you’ve done for our country.” He kind of brightens up and says, “Well, thank you for saying that.” And I respond back, “Because of what you and others have done, we can be out doing this right here.”

Later on, as we are heading to the checkout line, I stop and get a bag of peanut M&M’s. (My doctor probably wouldn’t like this, but they are a great source of high carbohydrates that I really enjoy, and they’re easy to carry around if my sugar level drops.) As I am snagging the bag, he is walking by me and simply says, “Yeah, it’s time to get the good stuff.”

Those were three people that somehow, in just a few moments, there was a connection between us, simply because of seeing them and acknowledging them as a person and what they are helping with and what they are accomplishing.

This is something each of us can do. No matter where we are, we are going to come in contact with other people, and in those contacts, if we simply see them and acknowledge them and thank them for what they are doing, that can make a whole lot of difference.

Jeff Becraft is the Director of Our Place of Hope located in Columbia, South Carolina, where people find encouragement to regain meaning, purpose, and hope for their lives. Jeff has dedicated much of his life to helping shift the vision of people’s lives. If you would like Jeff to speak