Galatians 6:7 (NIV)
Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps
what he sows.
Bernard Mears had arrived in America in his mother's
arms. He was two years old in 1878. The Mears family were all hard workers and
made a place for themselves in the land of opportunity.
Bernie was smart and wanted to be his own boss. When
Bernie was 25 he took a wife. Bernie had saved some money and decided on a dry
goods and grocery store combined.
He and Marie found an empty building to rent and
proceeded to fill it with inventory. There was an apartment upstairs. They were
not blessed with children, so the two of them worked side by side to become
established and build a trade.
Marie had a knack for arranging the merchandise to appeal
to customers and Bernie didn't mind the long hours. He was happy, life was
good.
The business thrived until the great depression hit the
entire country. No one had money to purchase pretty things or even food. In
1930, Marie had a heart attack and left Bernie alone.
Following Marie's death, which Bernie felt was brought
about from worry about the store, he lost interest in everything. He was
keeping odd hours of opening and closing the store. He had few customers and
did not make them feel welcome. Bernie wandered about the store, dusting a bit
and sweeping the floor. His inventory remained almost the same, as nothing much
was sold. After a while, he stopped sweeping and dusting.
The grocery part still had canned foods but little else.
Bernie was losing weight and not eating much once his fresh meats and cheeses
were depleted. A deep depression set in. He had lost Marie, his true love, and
now his business seemed lost as well. Why did he want to live?
A few houses down the street lived a family who had also
fallen on hard times. They seldom had three square meals a day. Julie, the
youngest girl was fourteen. Julie worried about Mr. Mears getting so thin. At
meal time, she would take a portion of their meager meal to Bernie. She would
stay and talk to him, dusting and cleaning.
After several months Bernie began to improve. He still
had no customers to speak of, but from what he had left in the store, he would
sack a few cans to take to Julie's family.
In early spring, Julie saw her father planting a garden.
This gave her an idea. She suggested to Bernie to make a garden in the big
space beside the store, which they had once thought would become a parking lot,
and sell the produce really cheap in the store. It would help the neighbors and
also Bernie to have money for new merchandise. They would plant half the garden
space now and half in three weeks giving them fresh produce for a long time.
Julie prayed hard as they placed the seeds in the ground.
When the seeds sprouted, Julie looked anxiously at the rows and there were no
empty spots. They all came up and produced the best crop of vegetables Bernie
had ever seen. Julie gave another prayer of thanks.
You might say those two had the idea for the first Dollar
Store as they reduced the prices until nothing in the store cost more than a
dollar with many items a penny or nickel. They soon became well known in the
community for having the best prices and finest produce in town. They also
extended credit to their neighbors and accepted various items as trade for
merchandise. The two of them worked hard throughout the 1930s and made a very
successful business. Julie earned a salary. As the economy picked up, so did
sales at the store.
Bernie was now in his 66th year. Julie was doing most of
the work while Bernie clerked a bit and kept books. They had hired a man to
plant and tend the garden.
One afternoon when Bernie closed his ledger, he smiled at
Julie.
"We are now knee deep in black ink, Julie. Our hard
work has paid off. Please give me a dollar bill."
Julie had no idea why he wanted a dollar, but pulled one
from her purse and gave it to him. Bernie smiled.
"Julie, you now own this store. I have given it much
thought, and since my parents have passed and my sister married well, there is
no one I want to leave it to, or who deserves it more. You saved me and the
store years ago. As soon as the paperwork to transfer title to you is complete,
I plan on going out and seeing the rest of this great country."
Julie thanked him and added that she would always keep
the name of Mears Family Store, and he could come back when he wanted to.
A few days later, Bernie packed and loaded his car and
left among many tears and good luck wishes from the neighbors. Many postcards,
letters and phone calls would be forthcoming over the years. Bernie would meet
many interesting people in his travels, and view wondrous things.
Julie sighed, wiped her hands on the big white butcher
apron she wore and went back to work. She sat down at Bernie's big desk and
thought to herself, who would ever imagine a Jewish man, a part Indian girl and
a few seeds would have survived the worst this country could throw at them and
come out on top?
We truly reap what we sow.
Dear Lord, help our eyes be open to the things around us.
Help us have the strength and the drive to do our very best even when things
look the worse. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.