Open Letter to the Lady in the Make-Up Aisle at Walmart in Auburn, Maine

As you walk into Walmart, you do not expect to be confronted with raw truth and honesty. A fleeting moment that goes right through you and you are impacted by it for the rest of the day.

Dear Lady in Aisle 10,

As I walked down to the make up aisle, I noticed you looking furiously for something. You were holding a piece of paper, reading it and then trying to find what was written down. You were flustered.

I looked over to you and you to me, and we mutually starting talking, you asked for help and I offered, at the same time.

You asked if I knew how to find a certain lipstick. We chatted about how make up is so different now and when you were younger and went to buy a tube of lipstick, they had about 5 shades. We giggled a bit about how their are now 500 different shades and no mirrors in the aisle to try anything out.

I then asked if it was for you or someone else and you told me that it was for your daughter. Then, as your voice started shaking, you also shared that you had lost your other daughter, the day before.

You weren't from Maine and didn't know what to do. You shared that all you remembered was that your daughter had asked you to buy her a specific lipstick for the funeral so she could look pretty for her sister that had passed.

My heart stopped. I opened my arms and just held you for what seemed like a lifetime and I could feel the loss, the grief, the heart broken energy and all I wanted to do was take it away from you.

I don't know who you are but humanity is within all of us. It comes out during the times we need it most. You needed help, love, kindness, human connection. I feel as though your daughter, who is no longer with us, sent me to you that day.

Just to give you the little bit of help and comfort when you felt lost.

I will never forget you and I will think of you often. You are a good Mom and just like I said to you, you'll always be one.

Love,

Lizzy

People need people. Don't close yourself off too much because then you won't be able to share that beautiful thing inside of you that could help someone else on the worst days of their lives.