In Service: Took a Risk

Editor's note: The artwork was submitted to Building a Better Boyertown for a contest to select a design for a mural to be painted on the side of the building occupied by Rita's Water Ice in 2023. While the design was not selected, it expresses the values shared in the vignette below. If you know the artist's name, please let us know so credit can be given: janeEstahl2335@gmail.com

Writers were asked to respond to the theme of "service' as part of Studio B Art Gallery's "In Service" project sponsored by a grant from the Berks County Community Foundation.

by Burt Stehly*

I was standing in line at the grocery store. I noticed a woman in front of me pensively staring at the cash register screen. She was holding her hand on her cheek, as her purchases were sliding by. She suddenly murmured to the clerk, while sorting through the items. I began to realize she didn’t have enough money. She was deciding what to keep and what to leave behind. Her eyes darted my way as she heard an impatient voice behind me grumble, “Oh, come on!” She looked at me with an embarrassed smile and whispered, “Sorry.”

I had seen moments like this before. In those moments, I had done nothing and later regretted it. I would not let this moment pass. I palmed a ten-dollar bill and sneaked it across the counter. Suddenly, it felt risky and even a bit insulting. I could feel my face getting flushed. I was heating up inside my coat.

She looked away and then looked back. I looked away and then looked back. I could almost feel the impatience of everyone behind me. She stopped sorting through the items and reluctantly pushed the bill towards the clerk. Her items were quickly being stuffed into bags. With a quiet dignity, she gathered the bags, clutching them tightly in her fists. She looked back at me and again she whispered, “I’m sorry.” My heart sank. I blurted out, “No, no, it’s ok.” I could only watch as she hurried away, determined and embarrassed. O, God, this was hardly the “savior moment’ I thought I would be. I had taken a risk.

I watched her disappear through the sliding doors. When they closed, I thought, “Well, I guess that’s it.” Then I began to think of all the millionaires and billionaires assuming their positions of power. They were busy buying homes and cars. They were eating in the finest restaurants. I wondered how often those in the “other America” ever crossed their minds.

* In the late 80's and early 90's Burton was the lyricist-poet for the experimental industrial group "Slavekind". In his travels he met the world-renowned electronic instrument designer Phillip Cirocco, Arizona avante-garde jazz bassist Gary Evans, and Michael Macdonald former drummer of the group "Gene Loves Jezebel" from Scotland.This became the touring group "National Razor". Burton was lyricist for their four subsequent album releases. He also continued live reading performances. He was never content to write strictly about personal feelings although it was a great self-therapy. Consequentially, he turned from inward to outward on the many lessons and pathways in the world he was traveling . His latest endeavor is a collection of writings in the forthcoming book entitled "Beauty Among Thorns".

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