My Cash Register Fell Silent
I run a small community grocery store. It's not in a fancy part of town. My customers are mostly my old neighbors and working families from the nearby apartment blocks. About 70% of my total sales come from EBT cards (SNAP payments).
November 1st was eerie. The machine was quiet. November 2nd, the same.
Today, one of my best regulars, a woman who always shops twice a week, pushed the door open. She was clutching a $10 bill. She didn't grab a basket. She just walked to the shelf, picked up two cans of beans and a small bag of rice. She always buys fresh fruit and yogurt.
When she handed me the money, she whispered, "This is it for now, boss. Gotta save the cash for rent."
I’m looking at the fresh produce wilting in my cooler and the milk that’s about to expire. When the government shuts down, it's not just my customers who go hungry. When their EBT cards stop working, my cash register stops working. At the end of this month, if this holds, how am I going to pay my business loan or the electricity bill? My store might run out of money before my customers do.
#SNAPInterrupted #SNAPShutdown #SmallBusinessOwner #DominoEffect
