an awkward encounter

It's strange sometimes, the little moments and awkward encounters that God sends our way to remind us of all that we have to be thankful for...

I went to Wal-Mart Monday night with a short list of things I needed to get -- one of them was new insoles for my tennis shoes. My beloved Nike cross-trainers have begun to show their age lately: long walks and thorough workouts are making my feet hurt because the soles of my shoes are almost completely worn through and without traction, and they just don't have the structure and support for side-to-side movement that they used to. But just as I cried when I drove away from my old Jeep for the last time, or when I chopped my unruly hair short for the first time in 20 years, I dread the separation anxiety that I know will come from parting with this comfy pair of old, reliable shoes. So I thought some good Dr. Scholl's might buy my Nikes some extra life support.

But as I stood in the footcare aisle at Wal-Mart, thinking all these morose thoughts about my dying shoes and trying to judge which insoles would make my feet stop hurting, a wheelchair came around the corner into my aisle, and in it was a young man with no legs. The irony of the moment absolutely flustered me -- there I was griping about my old shoes and sore feet, and there he was, perhaps wishing that he could feel the soreness of his feet once again.

I didn't buy any insoles. I couldn't, not in a moment like that. I just smiled and walked away empty-handed, completing my errands around the store and thanking God for my sore feet.