In a hurry to grab supplies for a kid with his wisdom teeth just removed, I grabbed my cart and headed into the store. I was in a large city — not my hometown — with so many people and so much traffic, all of which slowed me down.

Immediately, I was behind an older woman on a scooter cart. I was impatient. At a break in the crowd, I navigated my cart around her slow-moving vehicle. It was my first, but not my last, encounter with the woman I was to serve during that short 30-minute grocery store excursion.

I made it to the dairy section to pick up some cold pudding, and there she was reaching for the butter. She was struggling, grabbing her wallet, then her cane to try to pull it down. It was just out of her grasp. So I stood beside her and offered assistance. "This one?" I asked. She said yes, and I placed it in her cart. She thanked me. And off I went.

After a few more stops for juice, soup and an ice pack, I headed to the self-checkout. That should speed things along, I thought. As I entered the area, there she was again. Thankfully, she had help from the cashier. Positioning my cart at the counter next to hers, I began to hear the conversation.

"Let me see what I have," the older woman said. "How much is it again?"

The cashier responded — I didn't hear. "Well, I just don't have that," the woman replied. "What can I put back?" I had had enough. I walked over and said, "I've got this. How much do you need?"

Pass along the blessing
Believe it or not, the cashier already canceled her entire transaction. I told her to ring it all back through, and I would pick up the tab. After a brief back-and-forth between the woman and me regarding payment, I leaned in and whispered. "At one time in life, I am sure you were a blessing to someone." She nodded yes. "Today is my turn to return the favor." She cried. Then she handed me $20 to cover a portion of the bill. I did not argue. It gave her worth. I thanked her, loaded her cart, loaded my own and headed back to the aching college boy.

I am apparently very thick-headed. It took me not one, not two, but three times for the same woman to cross my path in order for me to realize she really needed my help that day.

Often, I am too consumed by my own plight to look around to see the needs of others. Other times, I am too selfish to part with my own, well, money. What I should realize is that in this life, we are all called to be blessings to one another.

There is no greater place to learn this virtue than from our farmers and ranchers. Over this year, they have come to the aid of each other by harvesting fields for a sick friend, providing hay for fire victims, hosting fundraisers for a father gone too soon, and rallying around a family who lost a young daughter. You have blessed your community, neighbors, friends and family. But don't let it stop there.

I urge you when you visit those large cities over this holiday season to take that small-town rural spirit with you. When you find someone in need, be a blessing. Because on that day, you may be the only one set in their path.