I rushed into the store, eager to grab a few essentials before heading home. As I turned down an aisle with my cart, I saw him. He moved slowly behind his cart as if each step was a struggle. Our eyes met, and in that instant, he broke down and wept in the store. Without a second thought, I hugged him. I knew the hug wasn’t a solution but a moment of comfort in his time of deep sorrow.
He had lost his grown son just recently, and the pain was fresh, the wound still open and raw. His love for his son was evident in every tear that fell. They had been incredibly close, and now he was left to navigate life without him.
As he shared the details of the funeral, his voice cracked with emotion. He looked at me and said, “I’ve been struggling with my faith for some time, and I haven’t let anyone know this. But here you are, and I’m telling you how broken I am. You popped around the corner, stopped, listened, and cried with me in public, and now you’ve hugged me twice.”
