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Ellie Broe

Calgary

Paid in Full

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*True story:

She took her dog to a nearby state park for exercise at the end of a long rainy day. On the way home, she ran into Kroger to pick up a few things. The few things turned into a cart full. Since it was nearly closing time, she hurriedly scanned each item and tapped the “pay now” button. As she opened her little crossbody bag to grab a piece of plastic, she found only her cell phone and driver’s license. She discovered she had no Discover, no Visa, no Mastercard, no cash, no checkbook. Nothing. She had no way to pay for her groceries.

What should she do? She asked the nearby attendant if she could run home and get her wallet. He walked away to ask a manager. A woman at the next register offered to pay half—a very generous gesture! But half wouldn’t cut it. The man in line behind her, holding three items, asked what the trouble was, and she frantically explained her predicament. He offered to pay her bill. 

“No, no, no! I can’t let you do that. I have never been in this situation. My family always pays. We are the ones who help others. Maybe I should just put everything back and come back tomorrow. Oh, I can’t believe I don’t have my card in here. It’s too much. I can’t let you do that.” 

“Ma’am, I’ve got my card right here. Please let me do this for you.” 

 So, as the story goes, he paid her debt and disappeared into the night. The woman remained dumbfounded. By the time the attendant returned with an answer from the manager, the stranger had solved her problem. As the woman pushed her cart to the parking lot with her bill paid in full, the kindness of a total stranger filled her soul.

The woman then tells me, “As I thought of how grateful I was and so indebted to this stranger, it hit me how much more indebted I am to Jesus for paying my sin debt, which I could never pay–ever! I’m just blown away by the grace of this stranger and by God’s grace towards us.”

*The woman in the story is my Aunt Ellie, my mom’s youngest sister, the one who took me to visit Great Aunt Helen in Detroit a couple of weeks ago. If you know the man who paid my aunt’s bill at the Kroger in Northville, Michigan, please thank him for us. 

Have you been on the receiving end of an act of kindness? Please share your story.

Centenarian

Inspired by Great Aunt Helen

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I’m in Michigan. I was born here, so I come back to visit family often. Great Aunt Helen is a big part of this trip. The time I get to spend with her is priceless. She is 102 years young. Aunt Helen lived by herself in Erie until January. The story goes that her mail carrier noticed she had not gotten her mail from the day before. She called the police, and they found Aunt Helen on the floor. I’m fuzzy on the details, but she spent a few days in the hospital, a few weeks in rehab, and now a few months in an assisted living facility in Detroit, closer to family.

My Aunt Ellie and I slip into Helen’s room. She’s delighted to see us, and we savor the fresh bread Ellie brought. Aunt Helen piles on the butter and announces she consumes a pound of butter a week and refuses to drink water. My arteries clog at the thought, but who can argue with a 102-year-old about her diet? Ellie’s English Setter steps in for a pat on the head and a few bites of Aunt Helen’s dinner before she makes herself comfortable on Helen’s bed.

The stroke has not affected Helen’s speech, or her humor as we joke and laugh together. I remind her of how she beat the socks off me in Scrabble and Bananagrams two summers ago. She laughs and says she’s had more practice. After we pray for her, our goodbye is warm yet bittersweet. 

The next day Ellie, Uncle Tim, and I visit Aunt Helen again. It warms my heart to see her a second time. She makes us laugh and inspires us. We play a couple of rounds of Rummikub. Aunt Helen wins one round and Ellie wins the other. Helen cheers for all of us.

I thank Aunt Helen again for her encouragement and support of my writing. In 2021, I parked my motor home in her driveway for a couple of days on my trek to Maine and again on my drive back through Pennsylvania. She generously gave me a Benjamin Franklin and told me to use it toward my new writing career. Now when I remind her that I bought an editing software program to help me become a better writer, she simply says she is glad she can help. Nothing makes her happier than knowing she can help people. I can only imagine how many others she has helped in her 102 years. She tells me she just wants to see my book when it’s finished.

Helen says she can’t hear or see well, but she reads the text messages aloud when they pop up on my phone as I show her pictures. A nurse comes in to check on her. She refuses pain medicine; she says she has no pain. Aunt Helen has never taken medicine. We FaceTime with her neighbor, Roy Walker, from Erie. She’s delighted to see him and makes him blush with compliments. He and a couple others helped her live by herself until 102, and she sings his praises. Rightly so. He tells her how good she looks. Now it’s her turn to blush. 

Tim, Ellie, and I must leave. She says she doesn’t need us to do anything. After hugs, selfies, pictures, videos, and a long goodbye, we slip out. When I step back inside to retrieve my jacket, I notice she has climbed into her bed for a nap. She didn’t need our help, but we sure needed her. I thank God for Aunt Helen and the inspiration, blessings, and JOY she brings into my life.  

Do you know someone like Aunt Helen? Who inspires you? Please scroll down and share below.