Carol was in the middle of what felt like the longest shift in the world. It seemed as if every difficult customer in the store was choosing to come through her checkout line today. If she didn't get to take her break soon, she was afraid she would snap. But for now, she put on a bright smile and faced her next customer, who just happened to be a harried-looking young woman with three children.
"Did you find everything you were looking for today?" Carol asked, feigning cheerfulness.
"All except for the magic pills to calm these guys down," the woman laughed hollowly, gesturing toward the children.
As if on cue, all three children began to grumble. "Mom, I'm hungry. Can we go home now? Can we get some candy?"
Their mother sighed. "It's been like this all morning. I'm not sure if they got up on the wrong side of the bed, or if I did, but nothing is satisfying them." She turned to her children and continued. "We'll have lunch when we get home, which will be just as soon as we finish here. And no one's getting any candy, because it would spoil your appetite for lunch."
As Carol rang up the purchases, the three children to grumble under their breath, and their mother just looked more tired. Carol felt sorry for her, realizing that most of her days were probably like this. "I hope you have a better afternoon---maybe everybody needs a nap and a reset."
The young mother sighed deeply once again. "Thanks! That would be wonderful, but I'm not counting on it."
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