Sometimes I need my head candled!

I was having a genuinely crappy day yesterday. My bad attitude had a bad attitude. Then this happened.

I walked into a room and was stopped by an acquaintance (who shall remain unnamed here). She said, "That book of yours. The new one that's on sale, I bought it today."
Instead of showing immediate gratitude because I was in a bad mood (and probably because sometimes I'm an ass) I replied, "You don't have a Kindle do you?"
She smiled and said, No. I downloaded the free Kindle onto my laptop, then I bought your book."
Instead of showing gratitude because I was in a bad mood (and definitely because I'm an ass) I replied, "You don't like scary books, do you?"
She smiled and said, "No. To tell you the truth, I'm not going to read it. My daughter will read it, she likes scary books, but I'm not going to read it."
Instead of showing gratitude (for no other reason than I am an ass) I replied, "Why did you buy it if you're not going to read it?"
She looked at me like the cantankerous child I was, smiled, and said, "I wanted to support you."
Like the Grinch whose "small heart grew three sizes that day," I found my gratitude - and I shared it with her. Then I apologized for almost stealing Christmas.
I walked out a much happier man than I walked in. Not because someone had spent .99 cents on Apparition Lake. But because an acquaintance had taken the time to be a friend.
While I'm at it; I'd like to thank all of my friends and readers. I am grateful to each and every one of you. I'll try to show it more often.