This blog post is taken from my book Golden Nuggets, and it’s my version of a poem entitled “The Cookie Thief ,” by Valerie Cox.
It goes like this…
A woman was waiting at an airport one night,
several hours to go before boarding her flight.
She purchased a book in the airport shop,
bought a box of cookies; found a place to drop.
Engrossed in her book; she happened to see,
that the man sitting near her, as bold as could be,
Grabbed a cookie or two from the box in between;
what could she do without making a scene?
She munched on the cookies; kept an eye on the clock,
as the rude cookie thief diminished her stock.
She was quite irritated; the minutes ticked by;
she felt like punching the thief in the eye.
With each cookie she took; he took one too.
Only one cookie left, now what will he do?
With a smile on his face and a self-conscious laugh,
he took the last cookie and he broke it in half.
He offered her half as he ate the other,
she snatched it from him and she thought, “Oh brother,
This guy has some nerve and he’s also quite rude.
He didn’t say thanks; showed no gratitude!”
She had never known when she’d been so galled,
and she sighed with relief once her flight had been called.
She gathered her things took off for the gate,
refusing to look at the thieving ingrate.
She boarded the plane and sank in her seat,
then pulled out her book from the bag by her feet.
And there in the bag, oh, what a surprise;
was her box full of cookies right in front of her eyes.
“If my cookies are here,” she moaned in despair,
“Then the others were his; he was willing to share.”
Too late to say “Thanks,” she realized with grief,
that she was the ungrateful, the rude cookie thief.
Isn’t that a great little story?
We all make assumptions and this poem’s a good reminder to ask questions and don’t simply assume that things are the way you perceive them to be.
Whenever you’re tempted to judge others, keep in mind that you never have all of the facts.
