Cookie Thief

A Poem by Valerie Cox

Cookie Thief

A woman was waiting at the airport one night,

With several long hours before her flight.

She hunted for a book in the airport shop,

Bought a bag of cookies and found a place to drop.

She was engrossed in her book, but happened to see,

That the man beside her, as bold as could be,

Grabbed a cookie or two from the bag between,

Which she tried to ignore to avoid a scene

She read, munched cookies, and watched the clock,

As the gutsy "cookie thief" diminished her stock

She was getting more irritated as the minutes ticked by,

Thinking, "If I wasn't so nice, I'd blacken his eye!"

With each cookie she took, he took one too.

When only one was left, she wondered what he'd do.

with a smile on his face and a nervous laugh,

He took the last cookie and broke it in half.

He offered her half, and he ate the other.

She snatched it from him and thought, "Oh brother,

This guy has some nerve, and he's also so rude,

Why, he didn't even show any gratitude!"

She had never known when she had been so galled,

And sighed with relief when her flight was called.

She gathered her belongings and headed for the gate,

Refusing to look at the "thieving ingrate".

She boarded the plane and sank in her seat,

Then sought her book, which was almost complete.

As she reached in her baggage, she gasped with surprise.

There were her bag of cookies in front of her eyes!

"If mine are here," she moaned with despair.

"Then the others were his and he tried to share!"

Too late to apologize, she realized with grief,

That she was the rude one, the ingrate, the thief!!!!

Valerie Cox

Susan says: Has this ever happened to you? I have to say that it has happened to me more than once, when I was so sure about something, I had assumed and drawn conclusions and been absolutely positive about my position, only to be proven completely wrong. I always feel shame and despair, especially if I don't have the chance to apologize. I agonize and feel like a failure and lapse into self loathing. So for me, this story is about humility - how important it is to be humble and unassuming. It is better to be humble than right. Because you may be wrong! And even if you are right, presented on a plate of humility, rightness is true wisdom. Humility keeps us focused on our own growth rather than the faults of others - like the "thieving ingrate" in the poem - and enables us to learn from our mistakes.

On my quest for spiritual growth and development, instead of being so quick to be vexed by supposition, I will ask a simple question. And keep praying. So dear God, please help me to be more humble today! Thank you, thank you, thank you!