I was strolling through the aisles of the local supermarket late one afternoon, when a sweet little girl, 4 or 5 years old, sitting in the front of her mother's cart yelled out in Arabic, “Hey! Grandma!”
I'd never met the child, but of course I rolled right over there and said hello to her. She knew a little English, and she was thrilled to have me give her a smile and stop to talk.
Her parents didn't feel that way at all - they were mortified that their daughter had called out to anyone, let alone a foreigner.
Her mother was fully covered, and her father was wearing a white dishdasha with full head covering. They weren't sure what I thought of them. The mother hung her head and apologized.
I told them both that I was honored to be called over by their charming daughter who was so friendly and open. I also let them know that I am, in fact, a real grandmother, so her comment was appropriate.
They didn't believe me.
I finally told them I was 60 and whipped out a photo of my granddaughter, Ada, as any good Grannie ought to do. They couldn't believe I was that old.
That's when I remembered that in many cultures, life is pretty much over by the time you are 50. Most people in China aren't working at that age and, from what I've seen, that can also be the case in the Middle East. I had just come from school and I was all dressed up, so perhaps they thought I was younger.
There wasn't much I could say to the parents to make them feel better, as it was clear they thought I was just being nice about it.
But I really was touched by this small girl and happy to spread some cheer. We parted in a friendly way.
* * *
Then, as often happens in grocery stores, we ended up seeing one another again as we came out of the end of different aisles.
They were coming straight for me. The little girl was wiggling in her seat, smiling, laughing, was trying to get my attention, and the parents were trying to distract her so that she wouldn't embarrass them again.
I leaned over my cart and waved and said loudly, “Look! It's my new Kuwaiti granddaughter!”
The parents froze, the child reached out for a hug, and all the onlookers smiled and said, “Aww....”
With that response, the parents started to relax.
* * *
And that's how it came to be that a little girl held on tight to an American stranger in the middle of a grocery store in Kuwait.
Kids are kids the world over. They keep it real, they keep it simple.
And after all, we all just want to be loved, right?