Having a Mooch

It was a Saturday at the beginning of a freezing February.  The start of a day running a Charity Shop.  I travel to work by train, a thirteen minute train journey takes me to Basildon. I know the area, but I don't 'know' it the same way I know my own patch in Westcliff.  

But I am not there for people to ask me for directions or wave a magic wand. No, the closest I can get to a spiritual purpose is to be working for a charity that helps the animals of people who can't afford to pay vet fees.  

So, when my first customer forces her wheelchair over the threshold of my shop I just sort of hunker down for a nine hour stint, getting through the day and trying to remember all the tasks that have been assigned to me on a Saturday.  The lady donates some books.  Lovely.  A good start to the day. 

'Is there anything you are looking for this morning?' I ask, hopefully with the vague idea that she may want to make a purchase while she is in the shop.

'No, not for me dear, I am just having a mooch'.  She says.  We both laugh. I can't remember the last time I heard anyone use the word mooch.  I tell her that if she mooches long enough she is bound to find something.  

Then she spots the silver/aluminium windscreen cover. You know, the sort that keeps the sun out of the car and reflects the heat away.  A reminder of long days at the beach followed by the drive home barely holding the steering wheel because it was too hot.  Yes, she would like to purchase the windscreen cover.  £1.99.  Off she goes. Happy with her purchase.

Off she went, out of the shop, only to turn back round and bring the item back into the shop.  She didn't want an inside one, she wanted an outside one.  Okay then.  Fortunately, we have a clearance sale and the lady just wants to exchange the items for something of the same price.  Lovely.  Unfortunately, because the lady is swapping a donated good for a new good ie something that Head Office know about and the Computer has registered with a PLU number (yawwwwn) I have to treat the exchange as an official refund.  Which means taking her details, her name, her address.  So, as much as I didn't like to hold my customer up from her daily travels, I have to take a moment of her time for this information.  

Turns out she shares my postcode, she lives down the road from me and her name is Hardy.  (My son's great-grandmother was called Hardy).  I enjoyed the moment and this level of coincidence and synchronicity helps to get me through my day!

Lots of love and light to everyone who needs it.

Tamasin x