I ran a few errands the other morning. Usually, errands are a series of stops at a variety of places to conduct business of several types. Pick up a package, fill up the tank, pick up mail or make a quick purchase, and typically a combination of such things. Two of my stops on this recent trip revealed to me the community that I live in better than any box store could have. I felt connected to the people.

My first stop was McCoy’s, a building supply store  whose corporate culture and values became solidified during Hurricane Carla several decades ago. My last order from them was big enough to require a delivery. The order I picked up was small enough to fit into my truck, so I had the pleasant experience of going into the store, conversing with a couple of the team members and absorbing the feel of the store with its combination of products that you would expect from such a store, as well as cowboy hats. The conversation was warm, pleasant…it was…a conversation, not practiced “customer relations.” As I walked back to my truck, I caught myself thinking, “I like those people.”

My next stop was the feed store located not far from “downtown.” The clerks who took my order, the young man who brought out the fertilizer to my truck and the customers who nodded their “good morning” greetings made me feel like I was amidst good people. People who know what work is. I was reminded of the vice president of Halliburton who told me 30 years ago that he liked to recruit from land-grant universities because “those students know the nut tightens to the right.”  From the vehicles they drove to the look of their hands to the clothes they wore, the people I met and saw were familiar with labor and with land. As I drove off, I caught myself thinking, “I like those people.”

I felt better about the community that I am part of because I shopped, not online and not in a box store, but in stores that felt like they were part of a community and not just an outlet for selling products. They felt that way because of the people, those who worked there and those who shopped there. I like my community a bit more because of my errands.