Every parent knows how it feels to be totally overwhelmed by their kids. Sometimes, children just like to do whatever they can to push Mom and Dad's buttons.
It can be especially frustrating to deal with unruly kids when you're already stressed out — like around the holidays.
Christmas shopping causes anxiety and stress for a lot of people. Shopping for the holidays is expensive and expectations are high, so it's almost always a challenging thing to do.
Now, throw wild children into the mix, and you've got yourself a very distressing situation.
Tiffany Spradling is a mom who knows exactly how this feels. She was recently at the store with her three young kids, trying to get all her Christmas shopping done in one day.
Her children, of course, weren't listening to her, so when a Walgreens employee approached, Tiffany was sure it was to tell them off for bad behavior. What he did instead almost brought her to tears.
Thumbnail Photo: Facebook / Tiffany Spradling
Tiffany shared her story on the Facebook page Love What Matters, where it quickly got a lot of attention.
Within three days, the post had over 22,000 reactions and over 1,500 shares.
Tiffany wrote:
Tonight as we were at Walgreens at Crosstown, this man approached us. I was assuming it was because Madi was running around with her shoes off in her hands, showing her tail, while me the obviously frustrated mother of 3 little ones trying to start and finish her Christmas shopping all in the same day, three days before Christmas in town with 1.2 million other people shoulder to shoulder no matter what store you walked into, clearly overwhelmed and exhausted, was screaming at my kids to get back over here and stop touching that and be quiet.
I thought he was going to tell me to quiet down and that Madi had to have shoes on in the store. He said his name was Devon, I didn’t catch his last name.
He asked what happened to Gabe, and Gabe told him he had been burned by a diesel fuel tank. I wish i could remember what all he said to him, but in the moment it was all I could do to keep my composure in the store.
He started by telling him what a handsome young man he was. And that no matter what, everything was gonna be okay.
Not to ever let anyone make him feel like he is any less just because he looks different. Not to ever get down or depressed because he looks different, but to look in the mirror everyday and be thankful that he is alive.
Every dream, every goal, anything he has ever wanted is and always will be just as attainable as it ever was. Not to let his scars keep him from anything. Always keep going. No matter what anyone ever says or does, just keep his head up and everything would always be okay.
He told us he wanted to tell Gabe this, because when he was only one year old, he was run over by a car and left with scars as well, and he wished someone would have told him what he was telling Gabe.
I wish I could remember everything that he said, but i do know that this was something that will never, ever be forgotten. I told him thank you so much, and it was nice to meet him.
Now as i am sitting here unwinding from last-minute Christmas shopping and reflecting on my day, i wish i had told him what a BLESSING it was to meet him. My anxiety had me wound about as tight as it possibly could without snapping, and i haven’t exactly been in the Christmas spirit.
It’s been a very long, hard, trying year, and right now things just aren’t the way they should be for our little family. And as hard as it’s been, it’s even harder during the holidays.
I’ve been stressed over money, our family situations, trying to find time to do all that has to be done, balancing work and spending time with the kids, my purpose, buying gifts, etc. I’ve been overwhelmed and a bit bitter to be honest.
But tonight this man reminded me that THIS is what it’s all about. These are the kinds of gifts we should be worried about giving to one another, and not just at Christmas.
I will most definitely be making a trip back to the store one day to let him know just how much those 3-4 minutes blessed my heart for the rest of my life.
I am so thankful for a person like this to teach my son such an important lesson just because. He didn’t know us. He didn’t have to say anything to us.
Tomorrow this little miracle will be EIGHT YEARS OLD! I hope as he continues to grow, he will always remember what this precious man told him tonight. Y’all, there truly are angels among us. Merry Christmas!!
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