I’m almost embarrassed to admit what prompted me to set foot in a grocery store again after two months of home delivery. It wasn’t increased feelings of security about entering public places or statistics about a decrease in COVID-19 cases in my area.
It was queso — pure and simple.
The queso my family loves doesn’t appear on Costco’s site for home delivery, and believe me, I check every time I place an order. It was when my desire for queso overwhelmed my fear of going into the store that I put on the required mask (my first time) and ventured inside for the hour before closing on a Friday night.
What did I find? More queso than I’d ever seen on the shelf (I tried to explain to a passing employee that this was because it wasn’t available for home delivery) and a stronger sense of peace than I would have thought possible a month or two ago.
I roamed the store looking for special treats for my teens. I restocked the ice cream bars I’d become fond of in the last month. I bought plants for the small raised bed my children and husband built for me on Mother’s Day.
I spoke to everyone because it made me sad the last time I was here when people seemed afraid of each other.
The mask kept me from touching my face (which seems to be a problem for most of us), but I removed it as I walked out of the store. I’m careful, but I no longer clean our groceries like a surgeon sterilizing scalpels before an operation.
Regaining my sense of peace has come slowly, bit by bit, in stages. It began on the night I wrote about in my last post, when I had done everything I could and knew it was time to trust God to do the rest.
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