My Own Socially Awkward Tale

Photo by Karah Hawkinson via Pixabay

Scene: 

Local grocery store during the supper hour

Action:

I was gathering my grocery sacks after they had been checked out and bagged. Usually I have enough groceries to warrant help loading from the store employees, but today I just needed a few items to make a quick meal before worship team practice. I could easily grab all the bags myself. In the short moments it took to turn my back to the door and pick up my groceries, I felt a hand on my back followed by a warm breath on my neck accompanying these words,

“Are you buying the beer?”

Reader, I was in fact, not buying the beer. 

The local grocery store doesn’t even carry beer to buy. 

In shock, I exclaimed “WHOA!” and quickly turned to find a man I did not know standing way too close. At the same time, he started backing up, stammering a little…

…you aren’t…

I thought…

…you were a nurse from the hospital…

Ummm, no. I’m not.

The teenaged cashier at the other register started laughing.

And that’s how I knew it was real.

Really creepy.

And really awkward.

If you enjoyed this tale, I invite you to read “Socially Awkward: Pressing Through Discomfort to Engage Tough Topics” by Ruth Buchanan. I was reading the book when this happened to me and felt extraordinarily at home in her chapters…especially when I could still feel that man’s breath on my neck…

Shudder.