Friday, May 2
I've been around for awhile, and I thought I had seen just about everything, but I was wrong.

While driving through Wilmington a few days ago, my wife decided she needed to pick up a few things at the town's only supermarket, so I pulled into the parking lot, and we proceeded to the store. After shopping for a time, my wife thought she had about everything she needed for the time being, and we headed for the checkout counter.

Seeing as we only had a few items, we walked up to the express lane to cash out. As we got in line, there was one gentleman ahead of us with a couple of items, and we waited for him to check out. The clerk behind the counter was an elderly woman who I would guess to be well beyond retirement age, but maybe she needed the job.

Anyway, the man in front of us, who was casually dressed, waited for the clerk to ring up his purchases. I don't know what his total came to, and I didn't care, but when it came time for him to pay, he was 47 cents short. I fully expected him to either put some item back or else to ask the clerk to put his items aside while he went somewhere to get the remainder of what he owed. Instead, something that I have never witnessed

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before transpired, and I was amazed.

The clerk reached for her purse, extracted the 47 cents the man owed, put it in the till and finished packing his items for him.

In all my years, I had never seen anything as surprising and generous, and even more astounding was the fact that the man let her do it. Neither the clerk nor the man appeared to know each other, so I can only surmise that the act was a pure and simple gesture of kindness from a person who had probably seen the tougher side of life, and having survived, was charitable enough to help someone else.

In a world full of unconcerned and uncaring people, it was a remarkable feat of benevolence, and it didn't go unnoticed by this writer. In today's indifferent and often harsh world, it is refreshing to know that there are still some good Samaritans around, even though their acts of kindness may go unnoticed and unappreciated by most.

Wilmington is a quaint little town full of small shops and boutiques that appeal to the many out-of-town folks who frequently visit it. The proximity of Mount Snow also draws many skiers and tourists from the big cities to the pleasingly old-fashioned stores and fine eateries located there.

Many of the out-of-town people own second homes in the area, so the supermarket is a popular spot for those staying for a while, who may need a few groceries to tide them over. The gentleman in front of us at the checkout counter did not seem to fall into this category, however, and I would guess that he was a local who had left home with little money in his wallet, expecting to have enough to cover his purchases. As it turned out, he did not.

Whatever the reason, the unselfish actions of one elegant lady have gone a long way to restore my faith in the human genre. If each of us performed just one act of compassion a day, we could change the world.

Knowing our regular columnist Joe Bushika, of Stamford, Vt., we are certain he had 47 cents ready in case the cashier had not come through.