I learned this lesson years ago, but apparently I needed a refresher course this evening:
We “pay” with what we can. “Currency” does not take one form.
The first person to visit the Little Yellow Free Pantry gave me my reminder of that concept. The pantry has been open since 2:00 pm on Saturday, but as of 6:00 pm Monday night far we had not had any shoppers, only DONORS! And we have had some amazing donors!! But I have been busy trying to figure out how to best get the word out to people who actually need the food.
But then I looked outside, and in the darkness, I saw the little glow of the pantry lights… I thought, “Someone is putting MORE in there? It is chock full right now!”. Then I saw a bag on the ground… I grabbed a mask, stepped out on the back porch, and said, “Hello!”. A woman answered back, and I walked closer to the pantry to talk.
I introduced myself and she told me her name. She was an older black woman, and her bags and blanket made it clear she has no where to call “home” (in the traditional sense of the word). I knew that many people in our community were experiencing food shortages, but I never guessed the first person to come get good would be someone experiencing homelessness.
She wore a mask (albeit a bit crooked…) so I was happy to have a conversation with her. I asked if she was looking for food, and her eyes gleamed with her masked smile. “Help yourself! Take whatever you would like!” I told her eagerly. And that’s when she reached out her hands to me and held these toward me:
Two tennis balls. Two tennis balls that were dirty and had
obviously seen better days. “Oh, no!” I
said, “You don’t need to give us anything!
This food is for everyone! Take
what you would like. It is free,”. But she kept her hands out and insisted that I
take the tennis balls. And that is when I
remembered – we pay with what we can.
Giving me the tennis balls was her way of “paying her bill”. She had probably picked them up in some park and carried them around in her pack. And now she had found the perfect use for them – to pay me! As soon as I understood the situation, I realized I had been wrong to reject the payment. “Thank you, thank you!” I said as I took the dirty tennis balls.
Then I asked her what she would like for food. I explained that there was much more food inside and I could make a bag of whatever she wanted. She said she would like something she just open and eat, some peanut butter, and some oatmeal in a cup. She explained that she would scrounge together some change, buy herself a coffee, and pour that in the oatmeal cup to cook it. My heart melted. I raced inside to put together a bag.
When I returned, she was staring into the lit, open pantry smiling and talking to herself. I gave her the bag, plus a $10 bill to buy some coffee. I told her to come back when she needed more food and to tell her friends to come if they were hungry.
When we left for errands 5 minutes later, she was still out there, dancing, talking, and looking in that pantry. It was like she was at some fancy store. And when we came home half an hour later we curious if she might STILL be at the pantry, but she was gone. But she had rearranged every item in there, top to bottom. Because if she was at the “store”, she was going to SHOP!! She must have found the bag of coffee in there that smelled so yummy, because that is gone. I hope a coffee shop will give her hot water so she can make her own (fancy!) coffee in the morning.
She also took the pretty little box that had a note on it asking people to write their special requests for food items. At first, I was disappointed that was gone, but then I realized maybe she couldn’t read the note. Or maybe she just needed a really pretty little box, cards, and pencil. I think she also took a battery out of one of the lights, but you know what? She needs that battery far more than we do.
I know I will see her shopping here again. Maybe she will bring her friends. I will smile, tell her hello by name, and gladly accept any form of “payment” she has.
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