After a day of babysitting our three-year-old granddaughter,
my husband and I decided at the last minute to head to Costco for gas. But we didn’t go to our neighborhood
store. The gas app on our IPad told us
that the best fuel price could be found at a different Costco so we headed
there. Neither of us felt like cooking
so after filling up came another last minute decision—eat a quick dinner at the
food court.
As we sat there sharing an ice cream, a couple of kids sat
next to us. Then came two more and
another two and another two until there were eight. Bringing up the rear and a pizza was a young
gentleman that the kids enthusiastically called ‘daddy’. As he passed out their dinner, it was evident
that many of these youngsters were challenged in one way or another—especially
the toddler who was sitting quietly in the cart. Then we heard one little girl’s
blessing: “Thank you, God, for my
family. Thank you, God, for this food;
and thank you, God, for the adoption."
My husband and I exchanged looks. We were on the same page. After almost 40 years of marriage, we don’t
always have to talk. He got up and
quietly asked ‘daddy’ if he could buy the kids some ice cream. The man was very touched and said it would be
fine. When ‘daddy’ told the children
that ‘this kind gentleman’ wanted to treat them to ice cream, they were
ecstatic. As my husband went up to the
food window, the man smiled. He
explained that they had been out all day running errands starting with the
baby’s physical therapy appointment early that morning. They were in the process of adopting
him. “This is my life,” he grinned. “But
I know I am blessed and I love it.”
Buying eight ice creams seemed like a trivial thing compared
to the selfless choices made by this good man.
God only knows what those children may have witnessed or lived through
until he gave them a loving home. Two
things I know for sure: eight little
people enjoyed their dessert that night and we went home happy to have shared a
moment with such a beautiful family. As
for me, I exceeded my daily smile-making quota by eight!
