Pagan Blog Project - Week 13; G
I spent the better part of the week mulling over what I should blog about for the Letter G. Gods? Goddesses? Gaia? Grounding? Ganesh? Green Man? Really there are SO many possibilities with each letter. I decided that something would come to me, and just to wait.
Yesterday in meditation it hit me;
GRATITUDE.
When it comes down to it, Gratitude is a huge part of my spiritual path. Without Gratitude, I would not be who I am or have come to this point in life. Or more accurately, I may be me and be here, but I wouldn't even be aware of who or where that is without Gratitude.
Years ago in a book store, I bought my first Oracle Card deck. I had been a student of tarot for a few years, but had never owned or used an oracle card deck before. I found the "Trust Your Vibes" oracle Card Deck by Sonia Choquette and the Trust Your Vibes book that goes with it.
When I got home, I of course opened the deck and looked through it, one card at a time, taking it all in. I noticed something funny when I got to the last card... Card 52, "Be Grateful". There were two of them. Two identical cards. Surely this was a packaging mistake, and it has always made me wonder if someone out there who also bought this deck is missing card number 52 from their set. But I also strongly felt that in some way, this was a message just for me. "Be Grateful". I removed the duplicate from the deck and it has been out in plain view ever since. Some years it simply stays on my altar. Some years it is taped to the refrigerator. Right now it is taped to the bulletin board above my meditation altar, just to the right of my computer desk.
That deck was indeed a turning point in my spirituality. I read the book and used the cards often, I began listening to Sonia Choquette's radio show on HayHouseRadio.com (also called Trust Your Vibes) and learned so much about what it means to really listen to your spirit and be a six-sensory being. My life and spirituality have never been the same since I bought that deck and book, but the underlying current behind it all has been the lesson of Gratitude. Without understanding the importance of Gratitude in all things, I don't think I would have come as far in my life.
When you teach yourself to live in Gratitude, you teach yourself awareness, mindfulness, acceptance, and grace. You can't be grateful for your experiences and gifts without being aware of them and mindful about them. You can't be grateful for something without fully accepting it... and accepting things teaches you to live gracefully.
Having this duplicate card in the deck that I randomly picked up from the bookstore shelf that day made me pay more attention to it than the other cards, and ever since then I think I have tried to focus on Gratitude as part of my daily life. Of course sometimes I stray and need a reminder, and Spirit certainly finds ways to remind me of that!
As some of you know, I work as a waitress. It's not always the most gratifying job, and it can be hard to be grateful when the tips are poor. But after yesterday's meditation, the word Gratitude kept popping in my head, and I thought, I really can't blog about something that I'm not actively practicing in my daily life right now. Before bed I wrote a list of 5 things I was grateful for yesterday. This morning before work I wrote another list of 5 things I am grateful for, then I went to work, determined to practice gratitude... no matter what.
Spirit decided to test me. My first table only left a two dollar tip. I took a deep breath, pushed away the feeling of disappointment, and said a prayer of gratitude. I said "Goddess, thank you for this gift!" My ego was trying to complain that two dollars was not anything to be grateful for, but I mindfully and purposefully silenced that voice and just said "Thank you" and thought about the gallon of milk that the money would help me buy. Spirit decided to test me again. My second table... a tip of $2.50. Ego was raging, but once again I took a deep breath, pushed away the hurt feelings and disappointment and again said a prayer of thankfulness and joyfully envisioned another item that I would be able to buy for my family with that $2.50. The day pretty much continued like this, and I think the universe just wanted to see how determined I was to continue living in gratitude while at work. I mean, tips were just lousy all day. But with every 8% and 10% tip that I got, I said that prayer of gratitude and just smiled and thanked the Universe for the gifts I was receiving. Then, at the end of my shift, something amazing happened. I had a table of 7 that left me a $25 tip. I once again said this prayer of gratitude but still noticed that voice nagging in the back of my head, saying that now at least maybe I will break even and this helps make up for the previous poor tips. I was surprised at my negative inner narrative... seems I haven't been paying attention to my thoughts nearly enough and this ego has gotten a bit out of control. Hmmm. No matter, I pushed that voice aside and just felt the gratitude. After my shift, I counted all my tips for the day, and I somehow had over $75 for my 5 hour shift. I thought back over my tables and it wasn't that busy today... it was a normal Wednesday lunch shift. I hadn't had that many tables through the day, and with the nature of the tips I had received, I just couldn't quite figure out how it added up to over $75, even with that $25 tip...
Somehow though, the universe provided for me. My gratitude in some way helped multiply what I was receiving, and attracted more. And it taught me that I need to continue practicing this awareness because my negative thoughts are just a bit out of control and really blocking my flow of gratitude right now. I'm going to continue writing a short gratitude list every evening and morning just to keep my mind centered on Gratitude as I should.... and I suggest that you do the same!
As for that oracle card number 52, "Be Grateful" that hangs on the wall to my right, I looked up the message that goes with that card again and wanted to share it with you, because we all need a reminder now and then;
"Make a list of all that you've been given so that you can fully absorb how much abundance you truly enjoy in your life. Think of this as your gratitude list. Add to it daily as you notice the little things in your life that you truly appreciate. Rather than worrying about what you don't have, look at all that you do have. As you understand how thankful you should be, you send a signal to the Universe to give you more. . . and it will."
Showing posts with label Work. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Work. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
Friday, July 17, 2009
How Not To Act in a Restraunt - Being Seated
Customers at the restaurant where I work are spoiled.
I mean, we pride our business on good customer service, and we try to give our customers what they want to keep them happy. It's a local, family-run business and we have lots of "regulars" who come in on a frequent basis. But still, I am often surprised at what these customers have come to expect and how they treat some of the employees.
When you go out to eat, you probably don't give a second thought to the hostess and where you are seated. If you go somewhere often you probably have a certain section you like to sit in, but are you really going to go out of your way to sit there? And do you really expect he host/hostess to know where you want to sit? Or - would you go as far as to be rude to the hostess in order to get what you want?
Here's an example;
Me; " Hi! Welcome to _____________. How many tonite?
them; "Two"
Me; "Would you prefer a booth or a table?"
them; "Booth"
me; "Okay, right this way please."
them, following me, then stopping and hollering after me; "NO! I'm not going to sit there."
me; "err.... okay. Would you prefer a table?"
them; "NO. I just don't want to sit there.... How about over there?"... (pointing to the opposite side of the restaurant.)
me, trying to restrain myself and keep smiling; "Okay, sure. Lead the way."
I mean, what's the point of having a hostess if you're going to pick your own seat? Do you not realize why we are even here?
If you have children I ask if you need a highchair and will take you to an accommodating section.
If you are handicapped I will seat you somewhere accessible and close to the door.
If you request a certain waitress or section upon entering, I will be more than happy to accommodate you.
But other than that, I am going to follow the seating chart. The Host/Hostess job is to make sure that all the servers are being seated equally. If one server gets 3 tables at once while the others each have 1, it is not fair to any of them. So, aside from taking the customers to their seats and providing them with menus and telling them the specials, it is also my job to keep the servers happy. Did you think I was seating you near the corner because I was picking on you? Or, I'm sorry, was I supposed to KNOW that you would prefer a window seat. You didn't say that when I was asking you if you wanted a table or a booth. Believe it or not, I can't tell if you have poor eyesight, claustrophobia, or a bad back unless you tell me.
So, now that you have asked to sit somewhere other than where I was going to take you, the other customers up front are waiting patiently for a hostess to seat them while you choose your seat. The waitress in whose section you are seating yourself just got a table 5 minutes ago and is still serving them, have fun waiting for service. Meanwhile, I have to go back to the front, make adjustments to the seating chart to show what has happened, seat the next customer, and hope the waitresses don't come up to me snarling and asking why I am not seating people in the proper order. And you wondered why I seemed to have to pull that smile out of my ass. If you had just requested a certain area in the first place we could have avoided the detour, and I wouldn't have had to hold back any snark in the first place.
I am sorry. I just really had to get that off my chest. Because it happens on a regular basis. Sometimes people are downright mean, or really rude. Other times I think they are not so rude, but still it can be annoying because they just want to seat wherever. I mean, if you could just sit wherever, we wouldn't have a hostess, now would we?
Please, remember to be respectful of all your service providers in life. We're mostly over-worked and under-paid; there's high chance that we might just go postal on you one of these days. * wink-wink*
I mean, we pride our business on good customer service, and we try to give our customers what they want to keep them happy. It's a local, family-run business and we have lots of "regulars" who come in on a frequent basis. But still, I am often surprised at what these customers have come to expect and how they treat some of the employees.
When you go out to eat, you probably don't give a second thought to the hostess and where you are seated. If you go somewhere often you probably have a certain section you like to sit in, but are you really going to go out of your way to sit there? And do you really expect he host/hostess to know where you want to sit? Or - would you go as far as to be rude to the hostess in order to get what you want?
Here's an example;
Me; " Hi! Welcome to _____________. How many tonite?
them; "Two"
Me; "Would you prefer a booth or a table?"
them; "Booth"
me; "Okay, right this way please."
them, following me, then stopping and hollering after me; "NO! I'm not going to sit there."
me; "err.... okay. Would you prefer a table?"
them; "NO. I just don't want to sit there.... How about over there?"... (pointing to the opposite side of the restaurant.)
me, trying to restrain myself and keep smiling; "Okay, sure. Lead the way."
I mean, what's the point of having a hostess if you're going to pick your own seat? Do you not realize why we are even here?
If you have children I ask if you need a highchair and will take you to an accommodating section.
If you are handicapped I will seat you somewhere accessible and close to the door.
If you request a certain waitress or section upon entering, I will be more than happy to accommodate you.
But other than that, I am going to follow the seating chart. The Host/Hostess job is to make sure that all the servers are being seated equally. If one server gets 3 tables at once while the others each have 1, it is not fair to any of them. So, aside from taking the customers to their seats and providing them with menus and telling them the specials, it is also my job to keep the servers happy. Did you think I was seating you near the corner because I was picking on you? Or, I'm sorry, was I supposed to KNOW that you would prefer a window seat. You didn't say that when I was asking you if you wanted a table or a booth. Believe it or not, I can't tell if you have poor eyesight, claustrophobia, or a bad back unless you tell me.
So, now that you have asked to sit somewhere other than where I was going to take you, the other customers up front are waiting patiently for a hostess to seat them while you choose your seat. The waitress in whose section you are seating yourself just got a table 5 minutes ago and is still serving them, have fun waiting for service. Meanwhile, I have to go back to the front, make adjustments to the seating chart to show what has happened, seat the next customer, and hope the waitresses don't come up to me snarling and asking why I am not seating people in the proper order. And you wondered why I seemed to have to pull that smile out of my ass. If you had just requested a certain area in the first place we could have avoided the detour, and I wouldn't have had to hold back any snark in the first place.
I am sorry. I just really had to get that off my chest. Because it happens on a regular basis. Sometimes people are downright mean, or really rude. Other times I think they are not so rude, but still it can be annoying because they just want to seat wherever. I mean, if you could just sit wherever, we wouldn't have a hostess, now would we?
Please, remember to be respectful of all your service providers in life. We're mostly over-worked and under-paid; there's high chance that we might just go postal on you one of these days. * wink-wink*
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