The Waitress
How One Person Can Make Your Day
It had been a hard ten days. I spent my first paid Thanksgiving break in a long time flat on my back, sicker than I’d been in a decade. After that, I dragged myself back to work still exhausted and weak. Every little task I had to do seemed like it took enormous energy. Plus the 100-mile round trip I had to drive that day made me want to check into a hotel, curl up, and sleep. At one time or another, we’ve all felt that way.
The restaurant I went to was my second choice. Initially, I was going to a 24-hour diner across the street from a public transportation center. Being a one-time robbery victim, I’m sensitive to my intuition, and when I saw a person enter the small diner that made my inner voice say “no,” I drove right on out of the parking lot to a larger composite shopping area with anchor stores, smaller shops, and eateries. The area wasn’t an enclosed mall but made to be like a village.
As beautiful synchronicity would have it, there was a parking space in front of one of my favorite bistros, a place that was a much better choice than where I went first. I was seated at a table in the back and greeted by my server, who had mile-long eyelashes, a black sequined face mask, and warm, friendly eyes that let her beautiful soul shine through. Every word she spoke was with tenderness and grace and a desire to make my breakfast a good one. No detail was too small and she was tuned into me in a way that can only be accomplished by someone who has love in her heart for others.
Our transactions were simple, more coffee here and there and some added powdered sugar for my Belgium waffle, the obligatory conversations that occur between a server and a patron. She never rushed me and I had the lovely experience of merely catching my breath after fighting traffic and illness. This lady was something special, her sweet spirit surrounded her and even wrapped itself around me. This was balm for my battered, tired body and wounded soul. I needed to be in the presence of this sweet angel.
My tab was small, but I tipped her the same amount. When she asked, “Are you sure?” I said absolutely because she had been such a blessing to me. I didn’t catch her name, but I will drive 50 miles to the restaurant again in hopes that she is there. She is someone I would be honored to have as a friend.
Sometimes it’s the little things and I just wanted to say, “God bless you, ma’am, and thank you. You really made my day.”
