It was obvious to her that he had his hands full. The boy screamed for lollies in the lolly aisle, biscuits in the biscuit aisle, and the same for fruit, cereal, and chocolate in their respective aisles.
Meanwhile, as the old man was working his way around, he kept saying in a controlled voice, “Easy, Albert, we won’t be long. Easy, boy.” Then came another outburst, and the woman heard him say calmly, “It’s okay, Albert. Just a couple more minutes and we’ll be out of here. Hang in there, boy.”
At the checkout, the boy started throwing items out of the cart, and grandpa said again in a controlled voice, “Albert, Albert, relax buddy. Don’t get upset. We’ll be home in five minutes. Stay cool, Albert.”
Very impressed, the woman went outside, where the man was loading his shopping and the boy into the car. “You know, sir, it’s none of my business, but you were amazing in there. I don’t know how you did it. That whole time, you kept your composure, and no matter how loud and disruptive he got, you just calmly kept saying that things would be okay. Albert is very lucky to have you as his grandpa.“
”Thanks, lady,” said the old man, “but I’m Albert. The little terror’s name is Steve.”