The Olympic torch meandered through our little town yesterday. That is, three or four runners came through each with their own torch thingy.
I’m not sure how it has been done in the past and this year (leading into next year) the runners keep their torches. I’m sure the fire sticks will be on Ebay soon. After much… an… tici… pation… the torch came through town. Forty-five seconds of hoopla later and they were on their way. It was fun in a bungee-jumping momentary thrill kind of way.
Anyway, Cal, myself and about ten other people served hotdogs, hot chocolate and coffee to the thriving masses. Cal was great! Now I know why the house is so clean. Once we managed to get the barbeque lit (no small task on a cold day) and the production line operating, we hummed along like a lightly oiled overly-squeaky machine.
The buzz of activity surrounding us grew quickly after the torch passed. Free hotdogs, hot chocolate and brewed java goes over well with the ravenous throngs. I always find it rather enlightening to serve people. Greet them with a smile (and something free… duh) and it isn’t difficult to get a smile back.
It’s the same with life. Treating people with respect tends to get respect back. Occasionally, there are people in our lives that grouse about everything. Nothing seems to go right for these folks. No matter how hard we try, their negativity affects not only themselves but everyone around them.
I used to be one of those people.
What changed? For the most part, my attitude changed. Not everything is a negative even though it may seem so at the time. Most negatives tend to be positives long term. I have found it’s usually best to reserve judgement on any situation until I attain a degree of separation.
Serving others changes one’s perspective as well.
In the context of yesterday’s foray into butt clenching frosty servitude, having a group of smiling faces makes every situation bearable… even the cold.
On the other hand, I could have simply had one of the runners stick a torch up my ass. Umm… maybe not.
