#30DaysOfThanks Day 13: The Soup Aisle

I was under the weather today so I stayed home to rest. I was home all day in a house with barely any food and kept noticing all the things that I didn't have and so naturally my stubborn, red headed self had to get out in the bitter arctic air and buy groceries. I was advised not to because I was sick, and that was likely the best advice he could've given me ... but my stubborness got to me and I went anyways and ended up at the doctors office gettings shots that I'm certain were filled with lava because they stung like they were getting paid to.

I had several things on my list to get but the main items on my list were items for soup. Who knew the soup aisle would be the most popular of all? Hellooooooo, DUHHHH Ryn, it's 12 degrees outside. People want chili in their belly. As I stood there in that aisle with what seemed like all the other women in Trussville, I watched people. As I observed all the people in their haste to get home and make said soup, I knew I had a choice. I could either chose to get entirely frustrated and leave the aisle only to come back later and fight yet another batch of hungry Trussville soup shoppers, or I could chose to learn from it.

I stood patiently as women pushed past my buggy to get to their chosen ingredient and I noticed the collective frustration of the group. As I gathered the ingredients of my WONDERFUL TACO GO-TO SOUP , I realized something. You see, each person on that aisle operated as though they each thought that they were the only frustrated one. They weren't rude, but the huffs and the puffs that they emitted painted a picture of irritation that was rich in color.
The truth of the matter was that each person was experiencing stress from the same situation. The levels of stress likely varied due to the external circumstances of the lives of those shopping, but this specific stress was of the same origin. And that happens in life so often. It's very easy for us to think that our situation is the most dire when we don't know what is going on in the lives of others. We all go through similar situations and I find it incredibly important for us to realize this especially as we head into the holiday season. Things are going to get busy. You're going to be late to some gathering or party and some random person is going to get in your way. Bear in mind that someone else is also in their way and that the circumstances of their life may be distracting them from making decisions that would be considerate of others. Be a person of grace, starting now.
Who knew the soup aisle could teach you so much?