Dreams - A penny for them

by Elizabeth

Today as I sat in one of the Supermarkets collecting for a charity I am involved with, it was interesting to see the people who entered to do their shopping.

There were elderly people, couples together with their groceries, young women with babies and small children in the trolleys, people going in and out with the just the odd items they needed during the week. Others were of various different races and cultures, some very smartly dressed, others rather casually and in work clothes.

I wondered what their lives were like and what they wanted and hoped for. Some would be judging how their money would be spent and what items they needed the most and what others could be left until more money came in next week.

Sitting there smiling at people and hoping that they would contribute even a little, it sounded a bit boring but if you looked at it another way, it gave you an opportunity to look at the world as it went by.

From the smallest child to the oldest person all have dreams of what they would like life to be, all have aspirations.

For the child it might be lollies, an ice cream, even a toy or a visit from a favourite person or an outing. For the elderly person it might be getting home, putting away the groceries, sitting down with a cup of tea and watching the T.V. for a favourite soap, sport and the news of the day. A visit from a family member or a friend dropping in with some baking may make their day.

The young mother would be watching the time so she could be home for children to be collected from kindergarten or coming from school. She would want to feed the baby and put him and the toddler down for a rest and give herself time to sit down for a break.


The young working person would be there on an errand for their workplace and watching the time so they would not be away too long.

For all these people, their lives would fall into a routine but they could still dream of what they would like to do, accomplish or where they would like to be. There was always hope that some aspect of their life would improve, that there would be a breakthrough for a family member who would be seriously ill, a child who had behaviour problems would miraculously improve and become more manageable. A difficult family member would become easier to live with.


The list goes on. The young mother who is tied down with children may look forward to a life where her children have reached some independence and she can have a break from them.


The couple who are retiring are thinking of their dream home in an area where they want to live. The single working person who is responsible for older family members may yearn for the time to be able to live their own life and do what they want to. Even though they love the elderly folk, they still feel constrained.

If these people even notice me, they wonder what I am doing there and how much at the end of the time the charity will be able to collect.


When someone comes to relieve me I will go and have something to eat before finishing the rest of my errands and then home to sit down.