More than just a box of cookies

I read the other day it’s Girl Scout Cookie time again! I started selling Girl Scout Cookies when I was in fourth grade at 75 cents a box.

Now that I look back, it’s not just about selling cookies; it’s about life lessons. When I was a kid, your parents did not drive you around, or take your colorful cookie display sheet to work. We were out walking door to door in the snow and ice wearing our official green sash and beret, just hoping to sell a box of mint cookies.

We had to start early in the morning to beat the other girls to the punch, but not too early to upset potential customers. We went out in pairs, usually with another sibling. You had to be careful not to enter people’s homes that were not approved by your parents. If the elderly neighbors who had prior approval invited you in, you better go in and visit.

I saw my first microwave oven when I was out selling cookies one year. The older couple on the other block had received a gift from their children. They invited me into their kitchen to look at their modern marvel. You could boil water right in the cup!

I learned not to take dares from the other kids while on my cookie route. Don’t go out and see if the ice on the rink was thick enough to skate on. OK, not my brightest moment. I went into the icy water up to my knees and had to walk five blocks home with frozen pants and boots. We went to the old house where the scary lady lived. We were informed by the other kids, she might be a witch. As it turned out, she liked us, and we would go back to see her even when it wasn’t cookie time. We came out alive, and no spells were ever cast.

When the cookies came in, it was time for more life lessons. You sorted the 101 boxes you had sold according to your order form. You had to make sure the cookies matched the customer because they knew how many of their favorites they had ordered. You then made the same path all over town — door to door with the cookies for delivery. Time for more visits, more cups of hot liquid coming out the mysterious metal box called the microwave. You also had to ensure you got the correct sum of money for the product delivered. If the money did not match up at the end, it was coming out of your savings. If you did not catch the customer at home, you went back as many times as necessary to make sure they got their cookies.