It turns out, we don’t have an aisle 21.

I learned this the hard way when a frustrated man stormed up to me while I was stocking paper towels.

“You work here?” he snapped. “Where’s the Buffalo book? No one knows what they’re doing in this damn store!”

I glanced at his wife. She gave me a look that said, I’m used to this.

Apparently, he’d already unloaded on one of my coworkers, who sent him to aisle 21. Which, just for the record, doesn’t exist.

“Sir,” I said, keeping my tone even, “I’d be happy to help you find the book, but I need you to speak to me respectfully.”

Before he could respond, his wife cut in: “I tried to tell him!”

The man froze for a moment, then sighed. “I’m sorry,” he said, his voice softer now. “My father’s really sick, and I just wanted to make this Christmas special for him.”

The air shifted.

“I understand,” I said. “Let’s go find the book.”

As we walked to the correct aisle (hint: it wasn’t aisle 21), he started talking about his dad—how much he loved Buffalo history, how he used to collect books on the city. This one was supposed to be a surprise for Christmas, but nothing had gone the way he’d hoped.

By the time we reached the shelf, the man’s frustration had unraveled into something quieter. When we found the book, he turned to me and said, “Thank you. For not yelling back. For listening, for being kind when you didn’t have to be.”

He apologized again—this time to my coworker as well—and left the store with the book and, hopefully, a little peace.

Here’s what I realized:

Anger is rarely about what it seems.

That man wasn’t mad at me, the store, or even the nonexistent aisle 21. He was mad at the situation—at life—for making him feel helpless when all he wanted was to give his dad something meaningful.

And sometimes, what people need most isn’t what they’re asking for.

Sometimes, they just need someone who sees the person beneath the frustration.

That day, I didn’t just help him find a book. I gave him space to feel human again.

And maybe, that’s all any of us really need.❤️