It's been a while since you guys have heard from me... Well, some of you anyway. Others of you received my blog updates and newsletters this Summer while I was in Ireland.
Let me catch those of you who care up: I'm back working at Kroger and loving it. I'm also applying for full-time jobs because they won't make me full-time. *sigh* I'm hoping I get to go into management within Kroger, but we'll see. They would have to hire me for that dream to be fulfilled, which hasn't happened. They have graciously given me an interview, though. Fingers crossed and prayers on the rest. :)
On the note of grocery stores, let's take a minute to talk about couponing.
Coupons are basically a cashier's nightmare. Most of them don't ring up, and customers get very angry when you tell them that they got the wrong thing or they realize the noise is going off that lets the cashier know that something is wrong with the coupon. Even when the cashier intends on giving the customer the coupon, I've seen customers scream at their cashier for the coupon not coming off immediately upon its scannage (yes, I did just make that word up).
Personally, I don't have anything against coupons except when the customer is really defensive and angry, or just doesn't follow our coupon policy.
This is what I've noticed: These women basically put their identity into these coupons. They refuse to get the items that the coupons don't ring up on, and they will dehumanize anyone who stands in the way of them getting the coupon.
But then there is always that one that graces us with their point of view. This actually doesn't happen very often. They normally just yell until they get what they want or stomp out of our store swearing to never come back.
The lady that talked to me tonight was not a born-and-raised American, but she was obviously an American citizen. She used WIC coupons for some of her order and then paid for the rest normally. This is what stuck out to me with her.
This woman initially tells me that she's almost stopped going to Kroger because every time she comes in our store she has a bad experience. As someone who makes it their goal to make sure customers never say that, I was a little hurt. However, she pretty obviously just needed someone to listen to her, so I sat there and listened.
She listed off all the men and women who have been rude to her whenever she has used coupons, giving me many vivid examples of this person or the other. She explained very clearly how it made her feel. She even used to words "discrimination" and "dehumanizing." She is near tears just telling me about it. She says that she comes to our store late at night, just to avoid these particular people because she know they won't be there.
At first I thought she was just being dramatic, as most of these woman are. But then she started to give me solutions. She said, "I've been thinking about this, and I think that if you guys just did a couple of things special for the couponers, everybody would be happy."
This woman is not trying to make my life, as a Floor Supervisor/ Customer Service Rep., miserable. She is not trying to hold up our lines. She is not trying to make other customers angry. This woman just wants to be smart with her money. She said, "I follow what the wording on the coupon says exactly, and if I missed something, I happily take the coupon back. But I shouldn't be harassed just because I'm using coupons."
Before she walked away, she stopped and thanked me for listening to her, and she actually left with a smile on her face. This woman was one of two or three in the last month of have given me enough of their time to explain why they do what they do, and how they think they can make it easier on us and themselves. Their attitudes have inspired me.
I really like my customers. Most of them try to recognize me and get to know me, and I try to get to know them. I even try really hard to memorize their birthdays and the cigarettes they like to get... Sometimes it's the little things, ya know?
Anyways, I've always had a hard time liking the couponers, mostly because they're never interested in getting to know my cashiers. They only care about their coupons. Then, with these couple of women, I have been doing exactly what the woman tonight said other people had been doing to her in my store. I have been discriminating against people who coupon.
As she so astutely put it, "I'm just trying to save some money and follow the rules. The least you could do is have a cashier who isn't going to harass me about it. I should get the same customer service as every other customer."
She's right.
We kind of do that same sort of thing in all areas of life though, right? For example: All people are sinners, but murderers are the really awful sinners.
I'm in this process of growing up.... And while in this process, I'm realizing that not everything is that cut and dry. We're all deserving of love and grace because Christ extends love and grace to all of us regardless of whether we are couponers, alcoholics, homosexuals, control freaks, worriers, etc. You get my drift, right?
It's all the same in Christ's eyes. So if I'm trying to be like Christ, if I'm trying to let him live and love through me, shouldn't I be viewing all of these people the same way.
Shouldn't I see all customers as deserving of love and respect, even in something as menial as checking out their groceries?
Shouldn't all people be shown love and respect no matter how big the sins are in their lives?
I'm not saying I want to go and hug murderers (yeah... no), but those people who go and do jail ministry are gonna have a whole set a crowns just for them some day because they choose to look beyond the outward sins of the people and jail and say, "Hey, you can change and you can be better because Christ loves you. And even if you don't want to change, let me get to know you and remind you of your humanity while you're stuck in here."
I'm willing to bet that woman will come back again, and she'll probably ask for me. She's just asking for someone to show her a little bit of respect. She just wants someone to acknowledge the fact that she is working very hard to save money for her family. She wants someone to acknowledge her humanity and hard work.
A word of advice to all of you couponers out there: Be nice to your cashiers. Sometimes coupon policies are confusing. Also, it's not worth getting upset over fifty cents.
To all you cashiers out there: Remember that couponers are people too.
And to all of you sinners out there, like myself: Praise the good Lord because he doesn't need reminders to treat us with grace love and mercy. In fact, he pours it out freely. *happy sigh*
And with that, I wish you all good night!
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