Tag Archives: acts of kindness

A Not-So Lazy Day

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At the Costco entrance, I waited while Jerry grabbed one of the massive shopping carts stacked together in rows. The carts often stick together and Jerry has the extraordinary strength to yank them apart like Hercules. That’s why he has the job to get the cart.
Jerry whooshed up beside me with our shopping cart and I flopped my purse and sun hat (necessary item in Arizona) in the cart. As I continued to stroll inside, Jerry stopped with a jerk. Something wrong? Turning toward Jerry, I noticed something odd. The man pushing the cart didn’t look like Jerry. “Oh! I’m sorry,” I said while retrieving my purse and hat from the cart. “You’re not my husband,” I added, laughing at my faux pas. The man, a balding, silver-haired older guy, smiled warmly and said, “No, but I wish I was!”
What? He wishes he was married to me? How sweet is that? And he doesn’t even know about my low-blood sugar moods. Let’s just say if it gets too low, I can’t guarantee the happiness for anyone within my immediate range. read more

The Woman Who Stole The Cookie

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Lattes became the rage in the 1990s and I landed a job as a barista in a beautiful plant nursery outside Seattle. I loved the job on many different levels. Flexible hours allowed me to spend time with my son when he came home from school. It also offered me the opportunity to meet all kinds of people. I loved the perk of free lattes (all I could drink). The nursery ambience of colorful flowers and classical music made the job a delight.
Each customer had a different requirement for their coffee drink. I had requests for lots of milky foam and others didn’t want to see a speck of froth. Some asked for ice in their coffee and others asked for their latte to boil, specifying “hotter than Hades.” Of course, we didn’t have gauges on our machine stating, “cool as heaven” and “hotter than Hades”—but I tried to oblige. Customers ordered extra syrup and others wanted just a “hint” of syrup, placing their forefinger and thumb together as they said “hinnnn-ttt.” I remember one customer made a stab at poetry in her order and asked for a “whisper of vanilla.” read more

Do you ever wonder why doctors have wheels on their chairs?

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(l-r) Nurses at Chandler Regional, Jackie, Lindsey, and the third nurse is a roving nurse who I didn’t have for very long and I don’t remember her name. Jackie and Lindsey were with me my entire stay and are super wonderful.

While in the hospital recovering from hip replacement surgery, my eyes opened to something I hadn’t thought of before. The EMTs, the nurses, my surgeon, and the nursing assistants didn’t need to extend kindnesses beyond their job requirements. Yet, many of them did.

“Jerry, would you like some coffee,” nurse Jackie asked, noticing Jerry seated next to my hospital bed. He said he would and that he needed ice in the coffee to cool it down. Soon Jackie returned with a giant cup of coffee and a cup of ice. Count this as one of the many things I noticed that I wouldn’t have expected. I would have thought Jackie would say, “You can grab a cup of coffee in the cafeteria.” But to get it for him? I didn’t expect that. read more