SHOPPING

Shopping can be fun--or not...

Lily showed her friend Edna the special closet just for her shoes. “Every time I get a new outfit, I get a pair of shoes to match,” she explained. “If I can’t find the right shoes, I have a pair dyed.”

 

     Edna looked with amazement at the shelves and shelves and shelves of shoes. “I don’t understand why you need all these,” she said. “You only have two feet.”

 

     Lily laughed. “It’s not the having so much as the getting.” She looked at Edna’s worn sneakers. “Why don’t we go get you a pair of shoes right now? I’ll show you how to shop.

 

     Edna retreated quickly. “No--no--I don’t---”

 

     “I was just teasing,” Lily said. “I know how much you hate to shop.”

 

     Edna did hate to shop. The idea of going into a store and trying things on, and then having to stand in line to buy something she knew wouldn’t be becoming and that she didn’t want anyway---it was just too much for her.

 

     Lily loved shopping. She loved to spend hours looking at herself in a three-way mirror, until she found just the right dress, the right pair of slacks, the right blouse.

 

     If clothes were Lily’s love, shoes were her passion. There was no thrill greater than trying on six, eight, a dozen pairs, then looking at her feet and knowing these shoes were exactly right.

                    ****

     Disaster hit Lily and Edna at the same time.

 

     Edna had been invited to a charity ball. It required evening dress, and she didn’t have an evening gown; couldn’t imagine shopping for one. So she simply put the tickets out of her mind. Then one morning Mrs. Marrou called. “I’ll pick you up at seven, Dear. They start serving at eight, and the silent auction is at nine.”

 

     “I’ll be ready,” Edna promised, knowing it was impossible. There was no way she could get a dress between now and seven this evening. Unless--

 

     Lily lived only a few blocks away. Edna ran to her friend’s house and knocked on the door. When Lily opened it, there were tears running down her cheeks. “Come in,” she choked.

 

     “What’s happened?” Edna asked. “Couldn’t you find the right pair of shoes?”

    

    “That’s not funny. I went in to buy those Roxanne sandals at Claire’s for only $56.99, and my credit card was rejected. I’ve maxed it out. I’m going to pay off the balance, but by the time I do, the sandals will be gone, and I’ll never see any more like them.”

 

     “I’m real sorry, Lily. I came here to ask your advice, but your problems are worse than mine.”

 

     “Well, ask me anyway. Advice is all I’ve got left.”

 

     “I’m supposed to go to a charity ball tonight, only I don’t have an evening dress, and I don’t know how to shop for one. It’s too late now, and--”

 

     At the word “shop” Lily’s face lit up. “It’s not too late. T-Ball’s on Center and Fourth will have something. And they do alterations right there. Come on.” And she propelled Edna out the door and down the sidewalk.

 

     T-Ball’s did indeed have evening gowns. As Edna gazed around in amazement, Lily was grabbing dresses for her to try on. “Pink…maybe oyster white with your complexion…”

 

     She hustled Edna into a fitting room. Edna caught some of Lily’s excitement and began to think this might not be so bad after all. She was enchanted with the first dress she tried on and wanted to buy it, but Lily wouldn’t let her. “That’s not how it’s done.”

 

     Finally they settled on a dark ivory. Lily helped Edna pick out shoes to match. Then, at Lily’s insistence, they waited while the skirt was taken up half an inch all the way around.

                         ****

     Edna received many compliments on her dress that night. “It’s the perfect colour! And those perfect matching shoes! You really know how to shop. Edna just smiled and said nothing. She’d learned something that day.

 

     Lily made out a budget and determined to follow it. She set money aside for clothes, because clothes were important--but not the most important thing in the world. She’d learned something that day.

 

     Edna learned that shopping can be fun--if you do it with a friend. Lily learned that while finding just the right outfit is a thrill, and finding just the right pair of shoes is a thrill, there’s another very special thrill that comes from helping someone else find just the right thing.

Reviews

[Sandy Miller]

I enjoyed the flow of this story, very easy read. I felt that Edna should have spotted Lily the sandal money for helping her shop...wait, I might be one of these women. Perhaps we should focus on managing our bank accounts.

[Marie]

Neither of them had husbands. And the whole point of the story was that each woman learned something.

[Workvio]

This is type of story that could give a lot men a heart attack at the thought of their wives shopping with a woman like Lily ... There's no mention of Lily's husband, so maybe they were already divorced, or he'd already had his heart attack and died ... That said, we men also have our things that we enjoy doing that make no sense at to most women ... This was a delightful and enjoyable story ...

[Paradox]

Maybe it's because I know people like Lilly and Edna. Maybe it's because I've been dragged along on more than a few shopping trips by "my" Lilly. Undoubtedly, it's because you wrote this piece in such a way that I could "fill in the blanks" from my own experiences that really made the characters "pop" and come to life for me.

I sure most people know a Lilly and, or, Edna, so can fill in their own blanks and have the characters pop for them, the way it did for me. Stephen King has a great quote on doing that, which I can't find at the moment. Grrr.

Nicely, and skillfully done.

[Marie]

Thank you. I am an "Edna", and my friend Tina is a "Lilly." She makes me bu things.

[Divya]

Vow!! Shopping, the work takes us to the world of Lily and Edna. We can feel their smiles and thrills. Also a noble end. Beautifully written

[Marie]

Thanks, Divya. I'm not much of a shopper myself.

[Divya]

I myself feel a litte shy while shopping

[Woody]

I personally know nothing of the thrill of shopping but I can imagine it is something women love doing. I'm a married man, sad to say. I like the idea the story is conveying, though. helping someone out can be rewarding and procures undeniable pleasure.
another good one Marie.

[Marie]

I hate shopping myself. I have a friend who loves it. If it weren't for her, I'd be wearing rags I owned 20 years ago.