An Advent Resolution

Sunday, December 3, marks the beginning of the season of Advent, the beginning of a new year, according to the Christian calendar. I have come, more and more, to appreciate the spiritual focus of the Christian calendar compared to the more civic nature of the Gregorian calendar. But over the Thanksgiving holiday this year, it dawned on me that perhaps I should have an Advent Resolution – not unlike the New Year’s Resolutions in which we often participate.

Here’s the story of how that started. On the Tuesday night before Thanksgiving, my younger daughter and I went to the nearby Publix, thinking that we could likely shop in a less crowded store than if we waited until Wednesday. It probably wasn’t as crowded as it would end up being on Wednesday, but you surely wouldn’t describe it as empty.

We both got our own buggies and started shopping. I finished first, and while waiting near the checkout area for my daughter to finish, I couldn’t help but notice a bit of tension at the cash register nearest to me. A middle-aged white woman was tearing into the cashier, a high-school-aged woman of color. I don’t know what caused this, but I do know that the same cashier was quite nice and friendly when I checked out a few minutes before this incident. I heard phrases like, “How can you be so stupid?” And then, “Go get the sales flyer, if you can read it.” Soon, the front-end manager was on the scene and took over. She asked the cashier to go to the break room, and then she proceeded to try and settle the irate customer down. The customer said, loudly enough to be heard across the front of the store, “Where do you get these people from?”

I wanted to go to the front-end manager and defend the cashier, but I thought that would probably only make matters worse. But I haven’t been able to forget what I saw and heard. I doubt that high-school student is working at Publix on a crowded Tuesday night just before Thanksgiving because she was bored and wanted something to do. Yet she ended up taking the brunt of a rather ugly moment while just trying to do her job.

On Saturday after Thanksgiving, I decided to run to the nearby Pike Family Nurseries and get some red cedar mulch to redo a mulch path in my yard. I got in line to order what I needed and pay for it, so I could drive around back and someone would load it for me. Three cash registers over from me, I once again witnessed a middle-aged white woman tearing into a cashier of color. The very nice lady checking me out said, “I’m sorry you’re seeing that.” I replied, “I’m sorry for the cashier. I don’t know what she did, but she doesn’t deserve that.” My cashier said, “You’re right, and this is not the first time with this lady.” The complaint that day was that the wreaths she was buying for her house were more expensive than they were last year. Two rather obvious things about that: first, how could that surprise anyone? And second, would a cashier at a nursery chain actually be able to lower the price? Once again, I heard some rather insulting language – again, directed at someone who was simply trying to do her job. 

I got in my pickup and drove around back at Pike to pick up my mulch. Tipping isn’t required in the loading area, but I almost always make sure I have some cash with me. On Saturday, I decided – in part because of the two incidents above – to give a very generous tip. Without looking at the tip, the gentleman who loaded my truck said, “Thank you,” and started walking away. Then, I could tell he looked at the tip, and he turned back at me with a huge smile on his face, and said, “Thank you so much.”

I have no idea what a person gets paid to load red cedar mulch or a fresh-cut Christmas tree. But I doubt it is much more than minimum wage. And I’m not trying to brag on the generous tip I gave to this man. I do want to make a point – we must start treating the people who help make the life we enjoy possible in a way that honors Jesus instead of embarrasses Him!  

Let me clarify that I’m not trying to pick on women or white people. Plenty of people treat others badly in public! It is just that these two back-to-back incidents – during the week of Thanksgiving, no less – have deeply bothered me. And I think I was in the third or fourth grade when my mother spanked me for using “he did it first” as an excuse for my own bad behavior. 

I hope to start a trend – a trend of resolutions for the season of Advent. Here’s mine: I am going to do my absolute best to treat every person I encounter – including my own family – with the same kind of respect and kindness that the baby for whom Advent prepares us would treat them.

I hope you will join me.

^{Image by Pexels from Pixabay}