Sit on that chair and don’t move a muscle….Those were the words of my mother when I was conscripted into accompanying her to the beauty shop to get her hair fixed. In the 1960’s women did not get their cut, they got it fixed. I am not sure how they broke it during the preceding week, but nevertheless that was the language. Thankfully trips to the beauty shop for me were very rare, but occasionally neither of my dear older sisters was available to supervise me, when my mother’s hair fixing appointment rolled around. So…I had to sit in the chair and not move a muscle.

I think about that formative childhood experience every time I see one or two older men sitting on a bench right outside the style shop at Walmart. It never fails. There is always at least one elderly gentleman perched in that spot waiting for his wife to complete the shopping. I always see them after I have checked out and I am heading to the car. They have such a lost look on their face. I wonder if their wives told them not to move a muscle. I have been tempted to stop and ask one of those men if they want to sneak off to Sonic and get a cold drink. I would promise to have them back before Gertrude finishes the shopping. But I suppose that would be like a stranger offering a child candy.

When I did my weekly shopping at Walmart on Monday, I saw two older men sitting in the usual spot. One of them was wearing a US Navy cap with the name of the ship he served embroidered on it. Both men were obviously two retired veterans waiting on their wives to buy groceries for the week. I quickly pictured those old guys as young sailors fulfilling their duties on a ship. In my mind, they were no longer a couple of old guys who are physically unable to walk through Walmart. It was actually easy this week to envision them in a younger stage of life.

There was a small group of men on active duty with the US Army in uniform visiting with the two retired veterans. They had finished their shopping and saw those guys sitting outside the style shop. So they stopped to talk for a few moments…I wanted to hear that conversation so badly. No doubt the old guys were telling the young ones what it was like back in the day! And that is ok! I suspect the older ones commended the active duty men for their service. And that is a good thing too. There is no telling where their deployment may lead them…I could tell that both groups were enjoying their chance meeting in Walmart. The retired veterans were old enough to be the grandparents of the men on active duty. What could they possibly have in common?

There is a generational chasm in our world for sure. It is incredibly difficult to bring the older and younger generations together. Technology has succeeded in many ways to drive us apart. But occasionally you see those moments of true brilliance. A group of young men in uniform taking the time to talk to the old guys… Such actions bridge the generational gulf that we have to face everyday. And of course they have a lot in common. They both are veterans who deserve our utmost respect.

I am convinced that the chemicals floating around in the air at the beauty shop in 1965 did something to my young brain. It’s what wrong with me today. But I still function well enough to recognize greatness when I see it. And I saw greatness outside the style shop at Walmart Monday…I wonder if Gertrude showed up in time to meet her husband’s fellow veterans? If not she might think he was making up stories about imaginary friends… Oh well…he can tell her that he did not move a muscle while she was gone.