Today, I ringed the bell for a good cause at Cash Wise Foods in a little town of Moorhead in Minnesota. My first experience as a ringer was three winters ago and being a huge believer of voluntary works in the community, I decided to sign up again this winter. It was an afternoon shift inside the supermarket by the entrance adjacent to the shopping carts depot. Sheltered from the chilly temperature outside, I flashed a smile and greeted "Merry Christmas" to everyone who came to shop. These are the things I have observed during the 3-hour shift:
1. Smile is a contagious thing. Everyone I smiled at, smiled back at me. One gentleman approached me, dropped some paper bills into the bucket and said: " You have such a pretty smile, I can't help but donate".
2. People are generous and unselfish when they know that their money will be used for a good reason. About 70% of the people who came to shop, stopped by, unplanned, to drop some bills, or some change.
3. "Merry Christmas" is still a universal greeting to acknowledge that Christ is the reason why we celebrate Christmas. One lady said: "Am happy that you greeted me 'Merry Christmas' and not 'Happy Holiday' because a lot of people nowadays has forgotten the true meaning of Christmas".
4. Nice people are everywhere. One gentleman gave me a cup of hot coffee. He said I might be feeling chilly. . . so I should take something to warm me up.
Other observations:
1. I also saw three familiar faces, one lady I used to work with at Orbitz.com; one lady I made friend recently who works at the Mall and one lady who's the mother of my fiancé brother.
2. There were three babies and 3 young children who came in with their moms, or dads or grandparents.
3. Most of the people who came to shop came prepared with shopping lists.
4. And I saw a most sweetest site of all: an elderly couple holding hand in hand. Talk about "love till death do us part"!
All in all, it was a good, productive day for me and I wouldn't mind having another beautiful day such as this.
No comments:
Post a Comment