Last night Nolemana and I went to Bento Plus for dinner. Itʻs our favorite Japanese restaurant around here. (Try read da reviews if u like see why!)
We got there around 7, which is late for us, and it was still busy. Our server was rushed and it was obvious that she was very tired after a long day of working. She was polite; just very busy, and didn’t time for any chit chat.
We ate our delicious meal and she brought us the check; I looked at her tired, hot face, and my heart went out to her. When she came back to give me my card and receipt back, I said to her, “I hope you can get some rest tomorrow. You’ve been so busy here today.”
Her face just lit up, and instead of rushing away as she had before, she stopped to say that she would get rest today, that she’d be spending the whole day at the Korean church she goes to, and that would be rest. Turns out she lives in Aloha (and pronounced it correctly, too, not like “Alowa” like most people here pronounce it (long story dat)). She stayed talking to us for a few more minutes, a smile on her face, and for a little while, the tiredness on her face was erased. She knew that I saw her as a person, not just someone bringing our food and taking away our dishes.
A week ago at Les Schwab Tire Store a customer loudly berated the young lady at the desk because the customer wahine was going to have to wait for a few extra minutes, and I could tell that her words hurt someone who was only trying to be helpful. As I walked by, I said to the young woman, “I hope the rest of the customers you talk to today make up for that woman’s rudeness. You did a good job trying to help her.”
It never ceases to amaze me how just a few kind words can have such an impact on others. Good or bad, our words can bring up or put down. We have the power to lighten a load or make it more heavy. We have the opportunity every single day to see with our hearts and not just with our eyes. We can bless or we can curse. We can choose be snarky or we can choose aloha. I choose the path of blessing and aloha.