I had been having a good-ish day; as good as they come in my line of work. No hugely bratty people...yet. Enter a middle-aged, hefty man and his timid, smallish wife. He greeted me warmly, and I immediately got that warm fuzzy "hey-you're-not-a-jerk-and-I-can-be-casual-with-you" feeling. I was mislead.
"I'd like a regular mesquite chicken, please."
"Sure thing! What kind of bread would you like that on?"
"What?"
"What kind of bread do you want? We have a list on your right there--"
"What do you mean what kind of bread?? No other Quiznos I've ever been to has asked me what kind of bread I want."
"Er...I'm sorry, but there's a list right there if you'd like to choose one..."
"Just put it on the bread it usually comes on."
"...There is no 'usual' bread, you have to pick one."
*Exaggerated eye-rolling and sighing* "Fine just do it on wheat. No no! I said I didn't want tomatoes!!"
His wife kindly ordered a turkey sandwich.
On the other side of the oven...
"Would you like anything else on your sandwich, sir?"
"Yeah, gimme some *lists everything possibly available*"
His wife kindly asked for some lettuce.
While ringing them up...
"Ok, anything else for you today?"
"Yeah, I want a bowl of chili."
"Alright." *Grabs bowl from counter*
"Wait, what??" Is that a bowl or a cup?!"
"This is a bowl... *holds up smaller dish* This is a cup."
"Whatever. Fine."
"Ok your total is $14.56."
"What?! Fifteen bucks?! You've gotta be kidding me! *To his wife* Fifteen dollar meal!! *Emphasized sarcasm while meticulously scanning the receipt* We should have gone to P.F. Chang's."
I was kind of put out about the whole ordeal; I really hate it when clients bash the employees for something we have no control over. The bread thing especially tickied me off--I'm giving you options, man! Why are you so angry about that?
You're probably wondering how a picky, middle-aged man could top stoned, abusive parents.
As I swept up the kitchen area, I happened to glance over at the couple's table. They were holding hands across the table and praying over their meal.
*facepalm*
I was so grateful that I took the order completely on my own and that my co-workers were otherwise occupied in the back room. This single contrast between irrational pettiness and an obvious show of Christian behavior could have laid waste to the last 4 months of testimony that I've tried to live out in front of my co-workers.
I've often wondered how people get off on thinking that it's ok to be jerks when they're ordering food. I've noticed that rare is the customer who makes and maintains eye contact with his sandwich-maker for more than a split-second at a time. Why are we so wary of being the redeemed and recreated people that we claim to be around those who serve us? Aren't we called to be servants, too?
Seeing the chasm separating Sunday Christians and weekday Christians and pre-meal Christians really angered me; bipolar Christianity shouldn't even exist, much less be condoned and expected!
"With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water."
James 3:9-12
You know, that isnt something we usually think about is it; the random little remarks and attitudes we make throughout the day... People are watching so we need to be cautious of what we are telling them about ourselves, our lives, and our God.
ReplyDelete