I was driving through
Pasadena on my way to Palm Springs. I
found a local coffee shop to refuel myself.
I wasn’t the only one with this bright idea. The place was packed. I ordered my drink and went outside to wait
the 10 or so minutes until my iced, specialty drink was done.
On the patio I saw a mother
and what appeared to be her 11 year-old son.
She was yelling at him and he had what can only be called a pre-teen
attitude and stance. It was a Saturday,
and by all means a beautiful California day.
The mother went inside, I
believe to go to the bathroom, still angry.
I said hello to her son. I found
him engaging and sweet. When I went into
the coffee shop, this young man opened the door for me.
After I got my drink, his mother
walked past me. Her son was on my other
side. In an instant without even
thinking, I said, “Excuse me, is this young man your son?” She looked at me with suspicion. I can’t say I blame her. She said, “Yes.” I then said, “He is a delightful young
man. And so polite, he opened the door
for me when I walked in.”
In less than a nano-second
this very angry mother walked up to the boy, put her arm around him and said,
“Do you know how proud that makes me feel?”
He immediately changed his body language and they left the café.
I took a moment to
acknowledge to myself that this very short interaction changed the course of
their day. No matter how the rest of
their afternoon went, for that brief moment, they closed the distance and anger
that they both felt.
For me, I couldn’t help but
realize just how big a small, positive acknowledgment can mean to someone else.
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