Lesson Learned

I have a confession to make.

I'm not always a very nice person. But I'm working on it.

My biggest downfall is making people laugh at the expense of others. It's mostly people that I know and love. They know that I do it for laughs and not out of meanness. I hope, anyway.

But, there are times that I say things about complete strangers that are mean and hurtful. I am fully aware that I shouldn't do it, but I can't seem to help myself. It is a toxic habit that I'm trying desperately to break.

Today, God taught me a lesson on remembering my manners.

A table was seated in my section. I walked up and as soon as I took a breath, I noticed it. They smelled really bad. I could go on and on about how bad they stunk, but like I said- I'm trying to be nicer.

I walked into the kitchen and told a co-worker about it.

"Nothing about them says 'clean' to me," was her response. We joked and laughed for a couple of minutes and then I took a deep, deep breath and walked back to them.

Chelsea, you don't know what their circumstances are.

You don't know them.

They didn't deserve that.

What is wrong with you. Mean, mean, mean.

They were the nicest couple I could have imagined. I felt terrible.

I was bringing their salads to them. My tray shifted and I dropped both salads, their bread, and their dressings all over the place. I felt terrible.

They were completely understanding and forgiving.

About 5 minutes later, I walked back to their table. She had a puzzled look on her face.

"Sweetheart. . . I don't know what this is. It feels like a seashell." She showed me what she had just pulled out of her mouth.

Oh. My. The woman was chewing on glass. Apparently, her replacement salad bowl had broken and no one noticed it.

Again- she was completely understanding and forgiving. And nice. She even apologised for finding the glass. I felt terrible.

Why was all of this happening to me? And to this poor woman?

And then it hit me. God knew exactly what I had said. And how I used this lady to make others laugh. It hurt. Probably not as much as it hurt her when she bit into the glass, but. . .

He was showing me that she was one of His children and she deserves as much love and respect as anyone else.

I am far from perfect. I'm sure I'll mess up. But I am going to try to be a nicer person.

In fact, I did very well today. She didn't leave me a much of a tip, even though most of her meal was comped.

And I didn't gripe.

I couldn't handle any more lessons today.