When David and I headed to Walmart on Beach Street, I had a plan. I was going to get my steps in, pick up a few things we needed, and hopefully find what I had gone there to buy. You know what they say about the best-laid plans. Apparently, the Lord had a different plan for me that day!
I had barely been inside Walmart for two minutes when my phone died. There went my plans to track my steps! But that wasn’t the only thing bothering me. Charlie was home and was supposed to be going to work with Bradley. If he needed me, he might not be able to reach me, and even though David had his phone, Charlie usually calls me first.
I explained this to David, and do you know what that man did? He burst out laughing! “Oh, he’s my son, too. He’ll call me.” Well, bless his heart. David was right about one thing. Charlie is his son, too. But apparently, Charlie didn’t get that particular memo! We were leaving Walmart before I finally called Charlie.
“Mom, where were you? I couldn’t get ahold of you!” “Did you need me?” “No, but where were you, Mom?” “Oh, my goodness! I’m not two years old. I’m at the store with your dad. I’ll live. I was just trying to find some stuff.” Then came the question I knew was coming.
“Well, what were you buying?” “Just some stuff.” “What stuff?” “Some stuff!” Finally, I told him it was a bra. “Mom! I don’t want to know that!” Well, DUH, Charlie! That’s why I kept saying “some stuff” in the first place! 😂 Sometimes, a mother doesn’t need to give her grown son a detailed inventory of everything she buys. And sometimes, a son doesn’t need to tell his mother every little thing he’s doing, either. But apparently, in our house, we all like to know everybody else’s business. Lord, help us!
Now, while all this was going on, I still had a mission to accomplish. I needed a bra. I had gone into that Walmart feeling optimistic. But as I wandered through those crowded aisles, I started wondering whether I would ever find what I needed. I kept hearing Jelly Roll’s song “It’s All Gonna Be Okay” in my head. Well, I certainly hoped so!
Then Rachel Platten’s “Fight Song” started playing in my mental jukebox. I was determined to get through this somehow, some way. If Dolly Parton and Rosie the Riveter could tackle their own challenges, surely I could find one little bra! There was just one problem. Like Dolly, I’m a little more voluptuous on top than some women, and I was beginning to wonder if bras in my size still existed.
Did the manufacturers stop making them? Had they disappeared from the face of the earth? Were they hiding somewhere in a secret department Walmart forgot to tell me about? I knew they used to carry Just My Size bras. I knew they carried Hanes bras. But all I seemed to be finding was Playtex.
So there I was, looking through a display that seemed to contain every bra ever made except the one I wanted. David looked at me and asked, “What are you looking for?” “The Just My Size bra,” I explained. “I know they used to have them. I know they used to carry Hanes bras. Did they all disappear from the face of the earth?”
That’s when a little lady who looked to be about eighty years old burst out laughing. Bless her heart, she was having a grand old time! She basically told David that if a man had to ask a woman what she was looking for in the bra department, he still had some learning to do.
Then she proceeded to explain things to him. I nearly fell over laughing! It took me right back to watching I Love Lucy. I could practically imagine Lucy standing there, getting herself into one ridiculous situation after another, while everybody else tried to figure out what on earth was happening. And there was David, standing right in the middle of my very own sitcom. I don’t know whether he learned everything that little lady wanted him to learn, but I sure got a laugh out of it!
By that point, I was beginning to wonder whether this was really going to be okay. The phone had died. Charlie was conducting an investigation into my whereabouts. I couldn’t find the bra I wanted, and I was starting to question whether the entire bra industry had forgotten women like me existed.
Somewhere in my imagination, Dolly Parton was probably telling a story about the whole adventure, while Rosie the Riveter was rolling up her sleeves and preparing to straighten out the shelves. I could see Rosie putting her hands on her hips and declaring, “We can do it!” Honey, I hope so, because I was running out of patience!
But here’s the thing about a frustrating day. Sometimes, when you look back at it, you realize there were good moments hiding right in the middle of all the aggravation. And I had one of those moments with David. Even though we were frustrated, the trip turned into something I needed more than I realized. It was time with my husband.
We weren’t rushing through another day at home. We weren’t checking off a list of chores or worrying about everything else that needed to be done. We were out together, trying to accomplish something, laughing at the ridiculousness of it all, and making memories along the way.
David could have gotten frustrated with me. He could have decided the whole thing wasn’t worth the trouble. He could have told me to forget the bra and go home. But he didn’t. He kept helping me look. He wanted me to find what I needed. He wasn’t upset that I needed extra time, and he wasn’t making me feel bad about wanting something for myself.
He was simply there beside me, determined to help me get what I needed. And that meant more to me than he probably realized. Sometimes, we look for love in the big gestures. The flowers, the fancy dinners, the special occasions. But sometimes, love is a husband walking around a crowded Walmart with you while you search for a bra.
Sometimes, love is patience when you’re both tired. Sometimes, love is laughing with you when an eighty-year-old stranger decides your husband needs a lesson in women’s undergarments. And sometimes, love is simply having somebody beside you who wants you to be happy.
That day, David reminded me of something I don’t ever want to take for granted: I have a husband who cares about the little things that matter to me. Even when those little things turn into a Walmart adventure worthy of its own television episode! The Lord had a different plan, after all
I walked into Walmart hoping to track my steps. My phone died, my patience was tested, and I nearly wondered whether I would ever find the bra I needed. But I also got to laugh with David. I got a story about Charlie that I’ll probably be telling for years. I met a little lady who reminded me of a character straight out of I Love Lucy. And I was reminded that sometimes the Lord gives us something good in the middle of an otherwise frustrating day.
I may not have gotten the shopping trip I planned, but I got time with my husband. And that was worth something. So, Dolly, Rosie, if you’re reading this in my imagination, I think we can all agree that some days call for a little perseverance, a whole lot of laughter, and a front-porch break when it’s all over.
As for Charlie? Next time my phone dies, perhaps he’ll remember that his dad has a phone, too! And David? Well, he deserves a little credit for sticking with me through the whole adventure. Grateful, Thankful, and Blessed—even when Walmart turns a simple shopping trip into a comedy show! Now, if you’ll excuse me, Dolly and Rosie are waiting on the porch. And after the day we’ve had, I believe we’re all going to sit a spell.
GratefulMoments.com
Grateful. Thankful. Blessed.
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
