Wade

There's this man that comes into the coffee shop that I work with nearly everyday. He is a loud and hyper man who always seems to notice if I'm wearing make-up or if I've changed my hair. I started calling him "old man" one day because he didn't have enough for the drink that he ordered so I simply gave him a "senior" discount. Since then, old man it is.

Today, he walked in and ordered his drink. Usually he's talking a hundred miles a minute and has his heart on his sleeve but this time he was quiet. So I looked at him in his eyes and asked, "How are you?" This type of conversation happens roughly a million times a day in my line of work. I ask people "How are you" all the time as they tell me they're tired or casually say "fine" or "good." Usually it doesn't result in anything penetrating. What I've found though is that even the most simple conversation can turn into something incredibly meaningful if you just stop being in a hurry long enough to see the person who is in front of you. I am convinced that our apathy speaks for itself - our body language, our eyes, our tone - all can tell the person you're speaking to that you either do or don't care about their answer to a simple question like "how are you." I heard something in Wades voice today (or rather lack of speech) that told me that things were not ok. When I asked, my question was more communication to him that I cared. Love or care or concern can not easily be feigned because the words or actions will be impotent. True love, care and concern speaks to the heart and somehow seems to lend strength to the receiver.

Contrary to my contact with Wade, I've found at times that I don't care about the answer. I can so easily get caught up in what I'm focused on that I forget to really look at the people around me.