Lunch lady

Left to right (obviously) Rachel, Steve, Scott, Bethany, Dan, Barb, and Ryan, courtesy of my cell phone. Apologies to the others who were there. You'd thank me if you could see the rest of the photos.

Once in a great while you run across someone who dares to set aside to-do lists, deadlines and responsibilities and exceeds their literal job description. Against the loud hum of "important activity," they still hear the faint sound of their own beating heart and remember who they really are and what they were created to do.

Recently my newsroom coworkers and I were the grateful beneficiaries of an unexpected gesture by one such person. It was a piping hot lunch — for a crowd — delivered in the middle of a crusher day. No reason. No explanation. Just because.

My colleagues blinked in disbelief at first, and then swarmed like they had just won the lottery. They had.

This lunch — it wasn't a transaction between entities, it was a connection among people. There was laughter, conversation, appreciation, great food, and even momentary joy. (Is joy allowed in a newsroom? Yes. Turns out it is.)

That act of kindness inspired me to listen for the sound of my own beating heart and remember who I really am. I wrote a note of thanks and explained how well-timed the lunch was and how deeply grateful everyone was. The lunch lady responded by telling me about her personal journey, her  job, and what she did to keep her soul intact while getting things done.

Unbelievable. A real conversation about real things with a real person who turned out to be so much more than her job description.

Thanks for the lunch, Ann. Thanks even more for sharing your heart. It feels good to be human.

— Also seen at Messenger Post Media.