The first time Peter ever shopped at Walmart by himself was a life-changing event for him. His 21 year old mom had given him some money to buy some snacks and drinks so he decided to go to Walmart a

There was once a 5-year-old boy named Peter who decided one day to embark on his first shopping adventure alone. His single mother, a spirited woman in her early twenties, had given him a couple of dollars. The goal: to buy a bag of crispy chips and his favorite soda from the local Walmart store. Peter felt a rush of excitement, being trusted with this responsibility Inside the supermarket, Peter was bemused by the explosion of colors and the endless stacks of food items, toys, clothes, and home appliances. After successfully finding his chips and soda, he headed for the counter, counting his money carefully as he waited in line. Managing the payment and change made him feel bit older, a little bit more in step with his 21-year-old mother. Just as he finished purchasing his chips and soda, he was suddenly stopped outside the store by a woman named Yoona. She was older, around 48, and of Arabic descent. She was homeless but carried herself with unwavering grace. This once prosperous woman from the UAE still proudly wore her hijab, long gown, flip flops, and a purse on her shoulder. She spoke English sparingly, her broken accent hard to understand. "Money? Give? Help?" She asked, a melancholy look in her deep brown eyes. Peter shook his little head, saddened by his inability to help. Seeing his compassionate face, Yoona began to cry, which made Peter step forward to embrace her in a comforting hug. Suddenly, everything started spinning for young Peter and before he knew it, the world was looking a little bit bigger. Peter glanced down and to his shock, he was wearing Yoona's long gown, her flip flops, carrying her purse, and the hijab was now draped around his own head. His heart raced, his five-year-old mind doing gymnastics trying to make sense of the situation. He cried out, "NO! Me! Big! Gi, Gir, Woman!" in Yoona's mature accent. He swiftly removed the accessories he deemed too feminine before he saw his old body already walking away. Peter’s mind was brimming with a mix of panic and confusion as he tried to express his desperate plea for Yoona to swap back. However, Yoona, now occupying Peter's tiny body, stubbornly refused, leaving him to adjust to the new reality. The transformation didn't end there. As Yoona-in-Peter walked away, Peter felt another shift within. His thoughts and memories began to merge with Yoona's, fundamentally changing his frame of reference. "No! I'm not a gir, a girl, a------ muslimah. Allah. What was I talking about again?" The last bit of Peter receded, replaced fully by Yoona's consciousness in mid-sentence. The new Yoona quickly remembered her headscarf, scrambled for her purse, and hastily put back on her flip flops. A hasty prayer to Allah for forgiveness was murmured before she moved along, a solemn figure of fortitude and resilience, with no memory of ever being 5-year-old Peter. As she walked away, Yoona-in-Peter stood from a distance watching, joy replacing the guilt in her heart. She was young and free of her destitution, even though the cost was high – the childhood of innocent Peter, who was now destined to wander the streets as calm, compassionate, 48-year-old Yoona.