"He was the handsomest thing ever..."

On Saturday, Rachel and I decided it was finally time go out shopping for our Father's Day present after learning the theme was "grill" this year and our job was to buy steak for the grill. So, we headed to the local Omaha Steaks to pick out some beef for dad. Well, as we strolled into the store, we started looking at different cuts of beef. As we started comparing the cuts of meat, the worst customer service fiasco went down right in front of us.
A women had come in with a coupon she wanted to use in making a purchase. The man who was helping her continued to insist that the coupon she was using would not be valid for her particular purchase because it was for a different item or larger purchase...something different than what she wanted to use it for. Well, the two fought for what seemed to be like forever but only maybe a minute or two. It ultimately came down to the man basically shaming the customer out of the store through a fighting/yelling match. Rach and I could barely move while it was going, let alone decide on whether we were buying the prime beef or fillet.
After she left, we slowly regrouped and made a quick decision on our choice. Another man was our cashier rather than one who had shamed the lady away. As we waited to pay, an older woman stood next to us also finishing a purchase. She smiled at me and I responded with a smile and a hi back. She took a second more and then asked the question which was on the tip of her tongue.
"I am curious what happened to you..? I was a nurse." She was obviously asking why I was in a wheelchair. I explained that I had broken a leg but that I was also normally in a wheelchair full time anyway.
She responded, "AH, I see. I kind of was wondering that. I am very used to getting wheelchairs in and out of cars. My husband lost his legs in the Korean War, so I was always getting him in and out of cars." This older lady spoke with such love about her late husband. I was close to tearing up as she told me about him.
I told her, "It's so great that you could serve him like that." She had probably one of the best responses I've ever heard.
"Oh, well he was the handsomest thing ever, at two feet high." I couldn't help but laugh as she slightly joked about him not having legs but she did it in such an endearing way.
She continued by telling me, "You know I never knew him any other way but I loved him so much." After this interaction we both left after saying goodbye. This women had a love for her husband that was incredible. She didn't hesitate in sharing with me how much she cared for him, whether disabled or not. The love that she had for him went beyond his disability and was truly a treasure. This interaction was a gift to me. It is obviously a fear and a reality that some people have a difficult time look beyond the wheels that drive me around. But this lady, (along with my dear sister-in-law) modeled a love for her husband that not only looked beyond but through the disability into a person and companion for life.