Walk a mile in her shoes.

A brand new consignor came into the store last week and she humbled me. First of all, she was late for her appointment - not a great way to start a relationship. And her clothes were in a basket (I require them to come in on hangers.). And she had spring/summer items (I'm taking winter.). She had about 40 items (my limit is 30 at a time).

And she began the conversation by saying that she was in a time-crunch and could I go through her stuff right away?

My first thought, of course, was "Wait a minute, lady. Whose store is this?" I mean I was about to blow. But for some strange reason, I didn't say what I was thinking (quite unusual for me).

And before I knew it, she explained her current situation. Going through a terrible divorce. Having some real difficulties with her kids. There will likely be custody problems. Getting 'grief' from her mother over both situations. She's not a happy woman . . . and I'm going to give her more unhappiness and lecture her about my rules?

I immediately changed inside my head. I felt so badly for her. It seemed like it was all she could do to not break down while she talked to me. Suddenly, I didn't care about my policies. I felt grateful that I could help her if only in a small way.

And all I could think of was the old saying about "walk a mile in my shoes." And I felt humbled and so fortunate that I wasn't in hers.