Always Stop at the Lemonade Stand (Part 2)

Always Stop at the Lemonade Stand (Part 2)

There are many things that I hope my boys will remember when they grow up and become parents. One of them is our unofficial house rule “Always stop at the lemonade stand.”  We always stop and buy a cup or more of lemonade whenever we see a lemonade stand. In fact, I keep a “lemonade fund” in my car just for that purpose.  The boys will now tell me if they spot a lemonade stand on the side of the road because they want to stop. They “get” it. You see, I’ve never been disappointed when walking away from a lemonade stand and I certainly enjoyed my own lemonade stands when I was a young child. In order to have a lemonade stand, you must be willing to talk to someone you don’t know and that takes some guts. You also have to be willing to do some work. When customers arrive, you must practice very important life skills, looking them in the eye and having a two way conversation with them. The conversation is always friendly and most often I spot an adult off to the side beaming with pride as their young entrepreneur sells me a cup of lemonade.  You might be thinking that the lemonade doesn’t taste very good and quite frankly, most often that is true. If that is the reason you are stopping, then you are missing so much in life. I don’t stop for the lemonade. I stop for that warm fuzzy feeling I get inside whenever I go to a lemonade stand. I stop for the smiles and the giggles. I stop for the conversation because kids have some great things to say if we listen to them. I stop because like the young entrepreneur, I have hope in our future. I believe in working hard to earn money.  Every time I walk away from a lemonade stand, I feel good and I have a smile on my face because I know that this great tradition continues. I celebrate because I conversed with a child who chose to run a business and interact with strangers face to face over playing video games inside on their own. I also reminisce about the good ole days when I used to have my own lemonade stands with my friends and one day, I’d like to get back together with them on the side of the road with a sign that says

“Free Lemonade for Everyone. Thanks for the Memories!”