Please & Thank You!
While out running errands this morning, Josh offered to buy breakfast, since we are having kitchen issues.
We ended up at one of our favorites, Waffle House.
One thing I have noticed since being in East Tennessee is how friendly and cordial are the people who work in the businesses here.
We placed our order and after we were eating, a different waitress stopped by our table to see if we needed a refill of coffee.
I answered, "Yes, please," followed by "Thank you" when she finished filling my cup.
She looked at me and said, "It is so refreshing to hear you use the words please and thank you. You wouldn't believe how many times I hear someone say ' Hey, how about a refill?' Or 'Hey, you, bring me some coffee over here'."
She smiled and said, "Yes, it was really nice of you."
I told her I am usually a considerate person who tries not to take too much for granted.
As she walked away, and mind you, she wasn't even our designated waitress, I wondered to myself just how many times a day she actually feels validated for a job so many take for granted.
We live in a very "self-absorbed" society, my new frequently used word...self-absorbed. I see it everyday, online especially, and also in the lives of people with whom I come in contact, whether directly or indirectly.
So many don't even have a clue that they actually fit into that category. They're so busy, whether it be with their jobs, or their four and no more, or even their circle of friends.
Josh posted a quote the other day, "If you want to find out who possesses the understanding of intentional love, move to a new city and pay attention to the people who engage you with their love."
How very true !
No matter what our circumstances, it's still apropos to say 'please and thank you' as a gesture of our appreciation for even little things.
My poem "Little Things" came to mind as I sat and watched the waitress busily waiting on others, cleaning tables and interacting with her fellow employees.
I saw Mama in my mind, as she loved to take my two grandmas and me to town back in the day, to get Jack's hamburgers, and sit in the car on S. Jefferson St. Or E. Jackson St. and watch people walking the streets. (I'm now a people watcher)!
I heard her voice, as well, as she spent her last few years unable to be anything but bedridden, saying 'please and thank you' for even the most minute acts of kindness.
Yes, how much we take for granted.
Those of you who follow me know I am very opinionated when it comes to politics and even my Christian values.
But, hey, I'm almost sixty-five years old now, and have been on this earthly journey toward my heavenly goal for over forty-three years, so it seems befitting to express my opinions openly and realistically. Some of my recent writings have addressed issues with which I've had to contend through the years, and I'm sure some of you have as well. Thus, you can relate, and some even possibly take offense at my poignant approaches. But believe me, we all have a wagon to pull and many are fuller than others.
I've found much joy in being who I am and watching how God continues to move in and through my life; drawing parallels to increase my faith in Him and to allow me to provoke others to be better than they are. I am an encourager, an exhorter, a hospitality maker, just to name a few of my gifts, when it comes to interacting with people.
Even though my approach may sting at times, it's actually a healing balm in the full scheme of things.
As Romans 8:28 states, "All things work
t o g e t h e r for good to them that love God, who are called according to His purpose."
So, may I provoke you to good works today, if you're slacking in that area? Smile a little smile at someone who may be downcast, give a 'please' and 'thank you' to validate a loved one, a friend, even a stranger; who may need to hear those simple little words. For sure, it's little things in life that mean so much...
Little Things
It's little things in life that mean so much,
Like a card or a call, even a touch
Ministers healing to someone in need.
Sharing God's love doesn't take a great deed!
It may be a song, it may be a smile,
That brightens the day and makes it worthwhile-
We just never know who's waiting somewhere,
Needing to know that there's someone to care!
It's not just the poor who need to be told
That little things matter much more than gold-
For houses and riches don't fill the bill,
Like 'do unto others' everyday wil!
So don't be consumed by living too fast,
You might miss your moment, feeling aghast!
Questioning, "Where did that little thing go,
That I was to do to let my love show"?
Go do it today, and do it with pride,
No matter how small, you'll feel good inside-
If you'll be faithful in all that you do,
A crown of life will be waiting for you!
D. S. Mullis
Copyright .2008
Please? Thank you!
D. S. Mullis
copyright.2017
I have been accused of not saying "please" and "thank you." I've also been accused of being arrogant. At work, I was always task oriented and focused on getting things done. Many around me were people oriented and seemed to try to avoid getting any work done but fill their time with idle conversation and relationship building. It sometimes made getting tasks done quite difficult. My serious nature may have led to those accusations. I believed in separating work and pleasure, working hard and then partying hardy.
My disability also required me to ask others assistance on very simple things. I recall asking a new boss to get me a cup of coffee one morning, and then realized that I had usurped his sense of authority over me and he treated me badly after that. As I get more paralyzed, I have to ask everyone around me and my hired help for assistance for almost everything. The number of pleases and thank you grows as this continues. If I drift away from it because of urgency or necessity, I don't think it is necessarily wrong not to do what Emily Post recommended for the servants and polite company
When it comes to common courtesy toward others, I don't think that God has any part of it. Most people don't have the humility of Jesus, so the number of pleases and thank yous they do doesn't matter anyway. The golden rule was around long before Jesus and Christians just assumed it.
Ron