Reposted from "Never Judge Someone"

This was too cool to not pass on. I am not making any claim to this story, but felt I should pass it on.


Never judge someone...

'Some people!' snorted a man standing behind me in the long line at the grocery store. 'You would think the manager would pay attention and open another line, 'said a woman.

I looked to the front of the line to see what the hold up was and saw a well dressed, young woman, trying to get the machine to accept her credit card. No matter how many times she swiped it, the machine kept rejecting it.

'It's one of them welfare card things. Damn people need to get a job like everyone else,' said the man standing behind me. The young woman turned around to see who had made the comment.

It was me,' he said, pointing to himself.The young lady's face began to change expression. Almost in tears, she dropped the welfare card onto the counter and quickly walked out of the store. Everyone in the checkout line watched as she began running to her car. Never looking back, she got in and drove way.

After developing cancer in 1977 and having had to use food stamps; I had learned never to judge anyone, without knowing the circumstances of their life. This turned out to be the case today.

Several minutes later a young man walked into the store. He went up to the cashier and asked if she had seen the woman. After describing her, the cashier told him that she had run out of the store, got into her car, and drove away.

'Why would she do that?' asked the man. Everyone in the line looked around at the fellow who had made the statement.

'I made a stupid comment about the welfare card she was using. Something I shouldn't have said. I'm sorry,' said the man.

'Well, that's bad, real bad, in fact. Her brother was killed in Afghanistan two years ago. He had three young children and she has taken on that responsibility. She's twenty years old, single, and now has three children to support,' he said in a very firm voice.

'I'm really truly sorry. I didn't know,' he replied, Shaking both his hands about.

The young man asked, 'Are these paid for?' pointing to the shopping cart full of groceries.

'It wouldn't take her card' the clerk told him.

'Do you know where she lives?' asked the man who had made the comment.

'Yes, she goes to our church.'

'Excuse me,' he said as he made his way to the front of the line. He pulled out his wallet, took out his credit card and told the cashier, 'Please use my card. PLEASE!'

The clerk took his credit card and began to ring up the young woman's groceries.Hold on,' said the gentleman. He walked back to his shopping cart and began loading his own groceries onto the belt to be included.

'Come on people. We got three kids to help raise!' he told everyone in line.

Everyone began to place their groceries onto the fast moving belt. A few customers began bagging the food and placing it into separate carts..

'Go back and get two big turkeys,' yelled a heavyset woman, as she looked at the man.

'NO,' yelled the man. Everyone stopped dead in their tracks. The entire store became quiet for several seconds. 'Four turkeys,' yelled the man..

Everyone began laughing and went back to work.When all was said and done, the man paid a total of $1,646.57 for the groceries. He then walked over to the side, pulled out his check book, and began writing a check using the bags of dog food piled near the front of the store for a writing surface. HeTurned around and handed the check to the young man.

'She will need a freezer and a few other things as well,' he told the man.

The young man looked at the check and said, 'This is really very generous of you.

''No, ' said the man. 'Her brother was the generous one.

'Everyone in the store had been observing the odd commotion and began to clap. And I drove home that day feeling very American.

We live in the Land of the free, because of the Brave!!

Remember our Troops of Yesterday and Today!!!

A great example of why we should be kind and patient. Kindness is the language the blind can see and the deaf can hear.

May God's many blessings continue to be with you - ALWAYS!!!

MAY THIS KEEP GOING....IT WILL OPEN A LOT OF EYES,HOPEFULLY HEARTS,AND KEEP SOME MOUTHS SHUT..

My Dear Daughter

There were times when we were apart that I felt the connection of love pulling on my heart. You have done and said so many things that have been stuck in my heart and mind. These are memories that I pull out of the attic of my soul and view every time I feel I've let you down or begin to miss you.

Life is a constant struggle that I have made harder for myself by my own actions, and I just want you to avoid the pain that I've caused myself and you. I don't want you to fall in the same traps I have fallen into. Let me clear the way thru the Jungle of Life, and you can follow the safe trail I leave behind me.

If the result of all my mistakes are that you learn from them and avoid repeating them, then they will have been worth it. At the very least I can show you how they've taught me to grow and shown me the power of humility.

I get calls from your mama when you start messing up because she is holding you up to a standard that she feels is your highest potential. She may expect perfection from you but that is only because she doesn't want you to stay at the same level you started at.

The only perfect person who has existed is Our Lord, Jesus the Christ.

Remember that baby. You can strive for perfection, but it will only be attained in the next stage of life, the stage called Heaven.

In the meantime, I want you to make the best of this "Vacation" from the realm of the soul. We are only on this planet for 80 or 90 years. After that the "Vacation" is over and we are back to the realm of the souls where we are going to spend eternity until we are granted another "Vacation" back to Earth (or maybe we'll visit another Galaxy on our next "Vacation").

So don't sweat the small stuff baby girl. It's all temporary anyway.

The Fights you have, the broken hearts you will suffer, the riches and the poverty. They are all Temporary. You can be happy one day and sad the next, but these feelings are temporary and they shall pass. You won't always be one thing or another because every day brings something new into your life.

Before your were born God knew you. And before you were born, you looked down on Earth and chose me as your Daddy. I think it was because you knew how much I needed the love that only a Child can give. You have been more help to me than I have been to you.

But now it is time for me to carry you a little bit my Critter. It is time for you to know your not alone in carrying the burden of life, and you don't have to protect your Daddy anymore.

So talk to me beautiful. Let me share the burden and carry you and your Cross for a bit.

I have become stronger in the soul. I can and will help you, but let me in baby.

I know that the poor grades, the attitude, the independence is only you spreading your wings and testing their strength. Remember, I may push you from the nest, but I will be right below you to catch you if your wings fail you.

So please remember, the Love of a Daddy is meant to sustain Daughters and strengthen Sons. But since you've been my only Child for so long, I've tried to strengthen more than sustain. To make you prepared to deal with what life will throw your way.

And I have much more wisdom to share with you, but let me in Baby Girl. Let me in.

The Swine Flu

OMG! The funniest thing just happened at work. I was just coming back from lunch and I had eaten some spaghetti with very hot crushed red-peppers and spicy italian sauce.

So when I came back to the office I was trying to quench my thirst with Dr. Pepper at the same time that I was taking a payment from one of our customers.

(I am laughing out loud as I'm typing this)

She has been our customer for 2 years and we have a good relationship. We joke about work and all kinds of stuff.

Anyway, as soon as she handed me the money to make her payment I started coughing from the hot peppers I'd eaten earlier.

But I just took the money and put it down. Then I took a drink of soda and looked her dead in the eye and said, "Excuse me, I have the SWINE FLU." The whole time I kept a serious but sad look on my face.

OMG! Her face froze in total shock.

She looked like she wanted to punch me but didn't want to get more contact with me.

Then My Boss started laughing and I started laughing and I told her I was just kidding.

She was so obviously relieved that I started laughing again. Then she finally started laughing.

There is nothing like the roller-coaster lurch to the stomach that someone gets from an unexpected scare. It dumps a gallon of adrenaline into your system that has to be relieved somehow. Laughing in this case.

Daaaaammm. My stomach hurts!

The County Line

So, last night my Friends and I decided to hit up the County Line, get some drinks and listen to music.

It was nice and cool outside so we grabbed a table out there. But you had to order at the bar.

Well, when I went inside to grab a menu I noticed a woman at the bar sitting by herself. She looked so tiny, but when she turned around, her eyes just trapped me. They were so big and a deep blue color that looked like an ocean or a clear sky. She was very light-skinned and had beautiful dark hair.

I grabbed a menu from the door and immediately joined my 2 friends outside. She had been telling him about the cajun shrimp and how delicious they were.

Too hell with all that, I thought to myself. I need to get back in there and place our food order before she leaves and the opportunity is blown.

After a quick debate, rushed by me getting up and saying I'll just get whatever, I went inside to place the order. V of course wanted R to go with me, but that would just look freakin weird, 2 guys going to place one order. Jeeeez!

Anyway, I get back in there and things are going well. The stool next to her is open and she'd made eye contact with me as soon as I walked in.

I walk up and pretend to stare straight ahead, while my peripheral vision is straining to catch every move she made.

I was feeling pretty brave, or reckless, depending on your point of view and decided to just start talking.

"So, what's good here?" I asked.

We both looked at each other and I just laughed. It was so obvious I'd been standing there silently for 30 seconds trying to work up the nerve to say something. And as my friends will tell you, FOOD is on my mind alot, so I thought it was a perfectly good opening line.

Turns out she did too and we started talking.

Now, I have developed a new rule recently, and that is; if I say anything humorous, slick, cool, confident or interesting I shut the hell up and walk away, so as to prevent my foot from inserting itself into my mouth.

But the problem here was I'd already thought up the OPENER, asked about work, made a joke about mine and gotten her name. NOW, I should walk away, but I hadn't placed the damm order yet.

So I literally turn my back for a second and pretend I'm looking at the drink specials just to try and come up with more interesting stuff to talk about.

Finally I decide to bring up my time living in Guadalajara, since she had family from Mexico. I mentioned how I noticed every local business there seemed to have my last name as the title. For example: "Gruas D****as" and "Taller de D****as" and "Tacos D****as" and so on and so forth.

Then I thought up the coolest move in my mind. (Now remember, I haven't dated in 4 years, so my moves are a bit outdated) I pulled out my business card to show her my last name.

Now she has my phone#, I thought to myself. I'm feeling pretty self-satisfied with myself, but also feeling like this is TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE!

I thought I'd wake up from the daydream any second now. So when I hear her mumble something to me all I hear is the last part as "....soy Hota!"

And I said, "WHAT?!"

and once again all I'm able to catch is "...soy Hota?"

By this time I'm thinking, damm, of course, she is a lesbian. (not that there's anything wrong with that! LOL!)

But I'm also wondering why she would refer to herself so Vulgar! Why not just say I have a girlfriend or I'm a lesbian. Why call yourself Hota?

Then she grabs my business card, holds it in front of my face and points to my Initial (J.), which in spanish is called a jota!

I start laughing out of nervousness again but cover it up by saying my name is J****. She never even knew what I was thinking, but I was laughing at myself on the inside.

So, long story short, she has my card. Hopefully I'll hear from her. But if not, those were the best 15 minutes I've had on a date this year. Next time she'll have to be in on it. LOL!