{"id":9906,"date":"2015-02-04T16:39:07","date_gmt":"2015-02-04T21:39:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/beginnersheart\/?p=9906"},"modified":"2015-02-04T16:39:07","modified_gmt":"2015-02-04T21:39:07","slug":"the-little-things-we-do-can-be-big-to-someone-else","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/beginnersheart\/2015\/02\/the-little-things-we-do-can-be-big-to-someone-else.html","title":{"rendered":"the little things we do can be BIG to someone else"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"via<\/a>
via flickr<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Today was a Starbucks day. I realise that Starbucks isn’t everyone’s fave. It’s not local (but it employs<\/em> a LOT of locals!), and it’s not trendy. Still, I like<\/em> Starbucks. They’re always (well, almost always) nice to me, and I like the coffee. When folks give me small thank-you cards from Starbucks? I’m ecstatic!<\/p>\n

Back to today: I dropped in at one of my nearby Starbucks. There are two equidistant from the house, and depending on if I’m going south or east is which one I use. The very nice lady at the counter took my order, and we chatted.<\/p>\n

What’s on your calendar today?<\/em> she asked.\u00a0And I told her — a very sad day, I said. Not that I can share w\/ you guys (not mine to tell), but I could tell a kind woman at Starbucks, who almost certainly won’t remember me.<\/p>\n

We talked about framing bad news, about how to focus on good in the midst of sorrow, about what we don’t know that waits\u00a0over the horizon. Obviously a devout Christian of the best — Jesus — type, she reminded me that we can’t know why things happen the way they do. I agree. And we both agreed that makes it no easier. Then she took my hand and said she would hold me in prayer. And gave me my two drinks free.<\/p>\n

I can’t begin to tell you how much that kind act on the part of a complete stranger meant to me. She reached out w\/ both her heart and her hands, and comforted me. I tried to pay, touched by her generousity, and she just shook her head.\u00a0This is my gift to you,<\/em> she said.\u00a0God loves you; you just need to keep that in mind.<\/em><\/p>\n

And because she was so very sure, I am. Keeping in mind that whatever differences she & I may have about who or what orders the universe, we both agree on this: love is at the heart of it. And sometimes, love takes the fragrant shape of a familiar white cup, steaming hot and comforting. Thank you, nice lady at Starbucks. You made my day.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Today was a Starbucks day. I realise that Starbucks isn’t everyone’s fave. It’s not local (but it employs a LOT of locals!), and it’s not trendy. Still, I like Starbucks. They’re always (well, almost always) nice to me, and I like the coffee. When folks give me small thank-you cards from Starbucks? I’m ecstatic! Back…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":398,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15,677,438,294],"tags":[11,1181,1187,262,1222,1254,1248,940],"class_list":["post-9906","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-compassion","category-connectedness","category-giving","category-kindness","tag-beginners-heart","tag-britton-gildersleeve","tag-buddhism","tag-buddhist-blogs","tag-coffee","tag-kindness","tag-living-in-the-moment","tag-starbucks"],"yoast_head":"\nthe little things we do can be BIG to someone else - Beginner's Heart<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Today was a Starbucks day. I realise that Starbucks isn't everyone's fave. It's not local (but it employs a LOT of locals!), and it's not trendy. 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