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This afternoon, headed out, on foot, with backpack, to nearby Dollar Tree, Fresh Thyme, GNC, and Aldi.

Of course, I wondered what kinds of fun interactions I was heading into.

At Dollar Tree, I asked the clerk, a polite, athletic looking young man, likely an IU student: “Are you new here? Haven’t seen you before.”

“Fairly new, about four months.”

“But you don’t have a parrot yet, right?”

He laughed. “Right.”

(Inside joke: Another, sweet older man and long-standing clerk, has had a pet parrot for many years. The parrot barks out “I love you” each time he comes home.)

At GNC, after looking around myself, I asked the clerk if they sell NAC. “I’ve got one here, right behind me!” he exclaimed. “Oh good,” I responded, laughing. “Now you don’t even have to put it on the shelf!”

At Fresh Thyme, a complex interaction: First, I run across a clerk who I’ve seen before, remember her because of her sweet smile. She wasn’t smiling today. Looking back now, I’d say she came across as bored and discouraged, while waiting for somebody in line for automatic check-out to need her help.

As I passed by, I remarked that I remembered her, because of her wonderful smile. “Come on, others have said the same right?” She instantly lit up, mumbled “yes,” and embarrassed, kept bringing her hand up to cover her face. “Oh thank you!” she exclaimed. “You’ve made my day.” Within another minute there we were again, talking. This time she asked my name: “Ann.” I asked hers: “Campbell. Cam-P-bell.” “Oh wow,” I exclaimed. “Unusual name.”

I asked if she was in school. “Yes, but I decided to take a gap year. Best decision I ever made.”

Me: “Good for you!” Then dramatically, theatrically: “What am I doing? WHO TOLD ME TO DO THIS?”

She laughed and agreed. I asked what her major was. “Harp. But I want to switch majors out of the music school altogether.” The music school at IU is world famous. Frankly, I was surprised: “Why?” “Because even though I enjoy the harp, I find myself out of step with the other students there.”

So here’s a young woman who’s already thinking for herself. Good!

At this point I was about to try my hand at automatically checking out. Usually I have to ask a clerk for help. But this time I did not. Went through, lickety-split. Felt very proud of myself. Until, that is, I was about to put a second jar of seriously reduced price Vitamin C in my bag. It fell to the floor, with a sickening clatter. I picked it up. Oops. Bottom shattered.

Campbell came up. “Just replace it,” she said. Sorry I can’t leave my post, but I’ll cover for you, let them know you’re not stealing.” We laughed. Just then another clerk came up who must have overheard us, and said she would replace it for me. “But there’s a problem,” I said to her. “I got the last two bottles on the shelf that were seriously reduced. ($18 to 45 cents)! And that’s why I got them!”

“I’ll figure it out,” the second clerk said, and headed back to the vitamin section. Meanwhile, Campbell and I talked more, speaking especially of how the world is actually a much nicer place than “the news” would have it. “Yes,” she said, “there’s a bad-news bias, and it’s awful. Especially social media,” she added, with a grimace.

A few more minutes, and we wondered why the clerk hadn’t returned. Oops! There she is, about to talk with somebody. That somebody turned out to be her manager. She too had noticed that there were no more seriously reduced Vitamin C bottles, and wanted to switch the broken one out with one that was full price. At this point the manager came up, with another young man who I presume also worked there. She started talking, I can’t remember what she said, but then the second man interrupted her. “Oops!” he stopped. “I shouldn’t interrupt people.”

“Yeah,” I countered, “You’re almost as bad as me!” Lots of laughs.

Needless to say, the manager approved the switch. And it wasn’t until I got home that I realized the one she switched it out to was a third bigger than the original.

Oh yeah, and one more interesting tidbit. At Dollar Tree I had debated getting a $5 rug doormat for the living room (because of tracking in snow, salt, etc.). But it was heavy, and stiff; didn’t want to carry it all the way. Hmmm. Maybe come back this way before walking home?

But wouldn’t you know, at Aldi, my final stop, there was a rolled up version of a doormat, easy to lug home and it cost $4.95, five cents less . . .

I love to shop the sales, which is why I make forays out to nearby stores several times a week. And of course, these forays double as occasions for surprising social interactions which, inevitably, are full of fun and good will.

In this troubled world of increasing atomization, let us recognize that each and every conscious interaction we engage in, especially those out in public, can serve as a tiny, potent dose of “alternative medicine” to help bend the world towards unity while lifting our own hearts.

The result, for me, unending JOY.