I’m sorry to say it, but I hate Walmart. I try to stay away from it for as long as possible, but every now and then there are just no other options. I made that mistake today. There was one thing that I needed from there that they didn’t have at any of the other stores, and of course when I went, they were out. I tried to salvage the trip and just decided to do the rest of my grocery shopping there and after waiting to check out, a five minute trip turned in to almost two hours. Alright, soapbox aside, time for a blog.
Luckily, my dad was with me for this trip so we split up for the check out. I hopped in line right when the cashier flipped her light off and said she was closing. It’s always nice to be the last one to make it in. I just waited my turn until Latoya decided to start ringing up my purchase. She asked me how I was, and I gave her my short answer and asked her how she was. I didn’t think anything of it, but I guess it meant more to her than I thought. She dropped my body wash in the bag and just looked at me. Then she asked, “Are you actually waiting for an answer?” I was a little caught off guard, but of course I was. The next 30 seconds were pretty cool.
Latoya asked me if I knew how many people came through her line each day. Of course I didn’t know, but then she told me how she would ask every single one of them how they were doing, and they would just mumble an answer and keep moving. It wasn’t even the typical, “Fine, how are you?” response. It was just a string of incoherent syllables. I guess it had been a while since someone had even asked her. She thanked me for allowing her to end the day on a good note.
I pulled out, but then turned around quickly because she never answered my question. I think that meant even more to her. She stepped from behind the counter to reveal the fact that she had to be at least seven months pregnant. Her response was, “I’m pregnant, working close to 50 hours a week at a job a robot could do, and I’m just tired. But today, I’m alright.” She smiled as she turned away, and I couldn’t help but do the same. I think there’s a small talk revolution in the works, and we need to just do a little more caring.
