She was around 40. She had eyes that seemed like they had seen a lot of life. Not tired, but … happy to just BE. It wasn’t a smile on her face, just a pleasant look. For anyone who was looking at her. There was her son standing beside her. He looked about 13-14. She was paying the cashier at DMart while the bag boy carefully kept all her shopping in separate bags. The son didn’t look happy about something. He wasn’t throwing a tantrum or anything, just one of those really ‘bechara’ looks, like he wanted something. He was looking at his mother expectantly, but she didn’t succumb to maternal love. Her son got a bit annoyed that his tactics weren’t working. He made a face and pulled at his mum’s arm. She looked at him, said something to him. I couldn’t hear what she said, but whatever she did, had its effect. The son stopped sulking, and let go of her arm. He looked sheepish. She diverted her attention back to the cashier woman, who was totaling her bill. The son looked away. And she looked at him looking away. Her expression slightly changed, ever so slightly. Her soft face softened up even more. Her eyes curled up lovingly, even guiltily. And she picked up a pack of chewing gum sitting next to the credit card reader on the teller machine. She tapped her son with it. He turned around, looked at his mum and smiled broadly. He eyes lit up as he took the pack of gum. But the real joy was on her face. Though her face went back to the soft, half-smile, there was a bit of understated satisfaction on it that wasn’t there before. Her son grabbed all the bags, she wrapped her arm around his shoulders and they went off. I was watching all this from the adjoining line at DMart. And coincidentally, it was the only time I’ve ever been to DMart that the cash line (mine) moved slower than the Credit Card line (theirs). |
