Heart Strings 5
My wife Sharon and I were driving home the day after Christmas, 1996. We had been visiting Sharon's parents in North Dakota for Holidays and were returning to Ohio.
We needed gas and we both needed some coffee, so I pulled into an out of the way "mini mart". It was late. I would guess about 2:00am. I pumped the gas and went into pay. On the way in, a skinny, old German Shepherd limped over towards me and would have followed me in if I wouldn't have let the door close behind me. While I was inside, I got Sharon and myself a cup of coffee and some snacks. I noticed an old man at the counter paying for a cup of coffee with some change. He had an old woolen hat and a light weight jacket that could not have possibly kept him warm on such a cold night. While I was pouring our coffee, I heard the cashier say that the man didn't have enough for the cupcakes he was buying. I watched the old man put the cupcakes back and walk out of the store with his coffee. I bought our coffee and snacks, paid for the gas and got back into our car. As I turned the key, I noticed the old man was sitting on a bench outside the store. It was snowing.
I was about to drive away when I noticed the German Shepherd limp over to him. He petted the dog and it looked like he was talking to her. As I watched the old man went back into the store. The Shepherd followed him but again the door closed, keeping the dog out. I sat there and watched as the old man came out of the store with something in his hand. He walked back over to the bench and sat down. The Shepherd was right with him. He leaned over and opened a can of dog food onto the ground. The German Shepherd started to gobble it up.
As I sat there watching this, it dawned on me that dog food must be cheaper than cupcakes. This man had spent what little money he had to feed this hungry dog. He sat there sipping his coffee, scratching the Shepherd's head while she ate. I turned the car off and went back inside the store. I bought the old man a sandwich and a couple more cans of dog food. His name was Peter. He said he had never seen the dog before, but as we left, we watched him walk away with the Shepherd following him.
I guess Angels come in strange packages.
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