All in the kindness of a stranger. I found myself more grateful than usual to be working today. This year has had it's struggles and my spirit has been challenged. Holidays have been lonely for me and Christmas was not looking much better. I was happy to go to work because I like the chaos of our holiday menus, getting everything organized to send home prepared holidays for tourists and locals who are looking for simplicity at home and more time for family. I was also happy because it is so much fun spending a day in the kitchen with my food family and visiting with my favorite customers, and I have been missing both of these groups since I started teaching again. Mostly, though, I was happy to be busy. Sitting at home during the holidays gets more lonely every time and I'm losing my spirit.
Today was as I expected. We got a little crazy, we got a little busy, we got pretty silly, and I saw all of the people I had hoped to help keep me up on kind of a down day. This particular holiday crowd brought a lot of new names I didn't recognize to our usual order list. Among these names was Mrs. Green. I did not recognize this name and I had not helped her before but she had ordered a very simple, low-maintenance dinner for twelve unrelated to our holiday menu. I enjoyed making her food most. I get a twisted satisfaction from making perfectly cross-hatched grill marks on food and her salmon was beautiful. I was on a roll with the grill today and feeling pretty good about it.
Mrs. Green came in when we were moderately busy but in control and asked for her order which was already packed up and ready to go. As the mighty boss-man rang up her order she asked him how many staff were working with him tonight. He told her there were four of us in addition to himself. Next she asked him to add $100 to her bill for all of us. He enthusiastically thanked her for her kindness. She paused and clarified her statement..she meant $100 for each of us. Mrs. Green, in her quiet kindness, tipped each of us $100 for her simple dinner on Christmas Eve.
On this lonely Christmas Eve, the kindness of a stranger has restored much of the spirit I've lost. This woman who left quietly with her dinner, and with no recognition for her generosity, gave me such a lift tonight. People can be good. People can be generous. People can be spectacular in showing their love..they only need the opportunity to show it.
Tonight I am grateful for my Steamboat family and for a kind stranger. I hope that in her holiday celebrations with family, she feels a bit of the love I felt tonight!
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