I rarely pay for things in cash,
Although some stores prefer it.
They charge more for a credit card,
So customers deter it.
But at the local bagel shop,
I placed my morning order
And realized that, when tallied,
I’d be somehow short a quarter.
I asked the counterman to please
Remove one single bagel,
To prove I wasn’t out to,
By some method, well, finagle.
He smiled and said, ‘You’ll bring to me
The quarter when you’re able,”
Not wanting to deprive me of
A bagel at my table.
I walked back home and quickly grabbed
A quarter from the pile
And at the shop, I plunked it down,
Which earned a startled smile.
The whole exchange reminded me
Of childhood; before supper,
To hit the grocer’s for some bread,
I was the picker-upper.
I carried change and worried that
I might be short some money.
The fact it happened now, not then,
Is really kind of funny.
Categories:
counterman, money,
Form: Rhyme
I needed a cake for a birthday;
I stopped at a fancy food store.
With Mothers’ Day coming tomorrow,
I lucked out with choices galore.
My daughter loves everything chocolate
And one seemed to really just pop –
A mousse-filled creation in layers,
But crowned with a satiny top.
When asked if the cake could, with icing,
Be personalized on the spot,
The counterman grinned with excitement;
I gathered he does this a lot.
With beautifully swirled dainty letters,
How deftly he piped every word,
But before he completed his artwork,
A happenstance strangely occurred.
He’d asked not a word ‘bout my daughter
But finished his icing design
With a musical staff and a clef note
When it’s music that makes her life shine.
How’d you know? was the best I could muster.
He just smiled as he tenderly placed
What he’d lovingly done in a cake box;
It’s just perfect, no matter the taste.
Categories:
counterman, birthday, mystery,
Form: Rhyme
Not everyone does it, but how I adore
A generous person who works in a store;
Specifically, one who's behind in the deli,
Who slices the meats and the cheese for the belly.
Today, for example, I ordered some cheese
And turkey, my grandson down next to my knees,
His hungry impatience apparent to all;
But just as it seemed he'd resort to a bawl
The counterman offered some turkey, a taste.
Disaster averted and hunger erased.
The guy was a stranger who sized up the scene
Or maybe, to him this was strictly routine.
It doesn't take much to connect with a smile
Yet to many, such actions are not in their style.
The deli employee, for such a small price,
Can improve someone's day just by cutting a slice.
Categories:
counterman, people,
Form: Rhyme