As I mentioned yesterday, Ricki had dental work done on Tuesday. But since the work took just a few minutes, the anesthetic wore off quickly, and we were finished within an hour of our arrival. And since the hospital is near a certain store that I wanted to go to, I decided to stop there, Ricki in tow, on our way home.
The store is a big one, and we spent the better part of an hour there. Ricki kept wandering over to the racks containing workbooks and discs that the store had on sale. She asked me to buy her several things, and I did agree to buy one item, but Ricki accepted my “NO” as well, when I gave it. (OK., she would ask me a second time, just to make sure, but she didn’t make any scenes and gracefully put back several items.)
One of the items I purchased was a utility closet, and after paying, I went to the manager’s desk to arrange delivery of the item (I do not have a car....).
After I asked the cost of delivery, the manager said quietly “Can I ask you something?”
Me: “Yes.....”
Manager: “Who is the girl with you?” Is she your daughter?” (Ricki was a bit away, out of earshot.)
Me: “Yes, she is.”
Manager: “Is this closet for her?”
Me: “No, but it will free an older closet for her.”
Manager: “So I want to suggest that I deliver it free of charge.”
Me: “Well... maybe half-price?”
Manager (pausing)... “Don’t misunderstand me. Not out of pity. But earlier I noticed her and I was really impressed by her behavior. I wanted to offer her a gift, but I didn’t because I didn’t know how she would react.”
Me: “Well, I am VERY glad that you didn’t offer her a gift, as I would have made her refuse it. I am teaching her that she is not allowed to accept gifts from strangers.”
Manager: “I suspected as much. But I would like to give you a discount..”
And he did. And the “half-price” he quoted was, I am sure, well under 50%. Yet I agreed, because the price was enough to cover the actual cost of the delivery.
But dear reader, what struck me the most was the progress Ricki has made. If you go back to my earlier posts, like these, you’ll see that she was far from what the manager saw Tuesday morning. Eureeka!
3 comments:
Yasher koach. If each person's chief tafkid in this world is perfecting their middos, then Ricki is doing the world's most important work every day, and doing it well.
This is joyce. Eurekka indeed!! Great job Ricki and mom. Hard work does pay off in the end, but oh it can be so tiring as you know.
That is a major accomplishment!!! I remember your challenges in shopping with Ricki-- and it is so wonderful to see how far she has come... You have put in a tremendous amount of efforts in educating and training and disciplining (actuallly, all those words mean the same thing...)-- how awesome to see the results... and I am impressed with the salesman's approach!
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