From delayed flights to long grocery store lines to waiting forever at a restaurant, Americans are notoriously impatient with people who waste our most precious commodity: time.
We’ve all been there and surely know the feeling of frustration associated with such situations, but one couple is showing the world that a small perspective shift can change everything.
Makenzie Schultz and her husband Steven were out to eat one night when they experienced a diner’s worst nightmare (well, other than food poisoning) — service at a snail’s pace. To top it off, they were having dinner to celebrate their anniversary, so it wasn’t exactly setting the romantic mood that they’d hoped.
After waiting 20 minutes for water, 40 minutes for an app, and more than an hour for an entree, needless to say, the couple was pretty darn irritated.
According to Makenzie, the service downright “sucked,” as she explained in her viral Facebook post.
But instead of taking it out on the waiter, she decided to get introspective for a moment and put herself in his shoes — for, at one time, she was.
Read her inspiring encounter in full below:
“So here’s the deal. Our service tonight sucked. Took 20 minutes to get water, 40 minutes for an appetizer and over an hour for our entree. People all around us were making fun of the restaurant & how bad the service was. Yeah, it was pretty terrible. But, it was very obvious that the issue was being short staffed, not the server. He was running around like crazy and never acted annoyed with any table. At one point we counted he had 12 tables plus the bar. More than any one person could handle! As I sat there and watched him run back & forth and apologize for the wait, I said to Steven… Wow, this used to be us. Waiting tables. I don’t miss it at all and I never loved that job. I did it for the tips. Steven and I agreed it would feel good to make this guys night when he would probably be getting minimal to no tips due to slow service. We walked out before he saw this and I’m not posting this for a pat on the back. I’m just sharing this as a friendly reminder to think of the entire situation before you judge. And always always always remember where you came from.”
After seeing him struggle as the lone server for 12 tables, Makenzie and Steven left the waiter a $100 tip with a kind note that read, “We’ve both been in your shoes. Paying it forward. :)”
Facebook/Makenzie Schultz
Since the post was originally published, it’s been shared over 257,000 times and commented on more than 11,000 times — even years later, that number just keeps growing as the couple’s act of kindness continues to inspire people across the web.
Facebook/Makenzie Schultz
It’s so cool to see this couple’s simple heartwarming act touch the masses with such lasting impact.
Sometimes we don’t know the battles other people are facing. And sometimes, they’re right in front of our face, if we will only take the time to notice…but either way, we need only to be kind.
