Excuse me ma'am

Tonight.

Our big boy was away at his first youth group adventure.

Ted had just returned from the store with a carload of groceries but nothing for dinner.  You know how that is right?!?

The only solution was to go out for dinner. 

So we did.

La Palma.  One of our local favorites.

After dinner as we were leaving the restaurant, I heard a woman's voice saying, "Excuse me ma'am?"

I kept walking.

I heard it again, "Excuse me, ma'am?"

I knew that the voice was calling to me.  I was the "ma'am".

I looked in the direction of the voice.

There was a woman walking toward me.

As soon as I made eye contact she continued,"Do you have a couple dollars you could spare?  I need to do laundry."

Without even really thinking I said, "Sure."

It was true.  I did have a few dollars I could spare.  I had spent more than that on a coffee earlier in the day.  As I opened my purse I realized that I only had two bills left in my wallet.  A one and a twenty.

I gave them both to her.  She said thank you.  I replied with "You're welcome".  I walked away.

As I was walking away, she realized that one of the bills I had just handed her was a twenty dollar bill.

She excitedly hollered another "thank you" my way and continued off across the street to who knows where.

I had never seen this woman before and probably will never see her again.

I don't know if she was a good person down on her luck or if she was just lying about the laundry to get some sympathy and money out of me.

I'm choosing to believe that she needed the money and that I was supposed to be there to supply it.

And I'm leaving it at that.