It's My Pleasure

Yesterday when the clock said 6:28, I punched in - so I could make my way to the front of the store, unlock the window, sign on to the register, and flip the lights to "green" at 6:30-on-the-dot.
We were ready to begin serving guests with grace and a smile.
And yummy chicken, of course!
As the dark sky became lighter and more guests came for breakfast, I was enjoying opportunities for fun chatter and a few moments of deeper conversation. I truly delight in the comments which lead to philosophical ponderings, which ultimately leave both of us commentators scratching our heads and smiling about some deep thought we'd never thunk before.
One woman asked me about the training we go through during orientation, because she wanted to know how Chick-fil-A employees seem so consistent in pursuing excellent customer relations.
I enjoyed playful banter with another guest who was "an hour away from leaving for Cancun." The very cold air emboldened me to feign jealousy of his trip (I mean, I only had to pretend a little. *wink*) and he promised to bring back a full report his wonderful and warm vacation.
And then, there was the young mom with a two-year-old - who was having a crying fit because he "wanted to go to Meijer." When I came back to the window with their order, said crying child had calmed down and was peeking at me from the back seat. I said, "Hi there!" And he smiled and waved. So I asked, "Are you having a great day?" And he giggled and said, "Yeah!" At which point Mom and I exchanged knowing looks, and I wished her peace in the midst of toddler-moods-which-can-turn-on-a-dime, as she drove off into the day.
Indeed, there were a lot of things which were going right in the drive-thru yesterday.
But there were also less-than-stellar moments.
Orders which weren't heard correctly or said right or entered accurately, or something - which had to be refunded or remade or re-ordered. (And caused delays which, of course, nobody wants.) Other details (to which I am not privy, because I'm just trying to manage the window...) sometimes got confused and attitudes were affected, frustrations were expressed, and a feeling of gloom lurked in the air. To the extent that - at one point - I felt like just plopping down and having a little cry.
And just about exactly at that point, as I was handing an order out the window, the guest in the car said, "You guys are amazing. You do such a great job here. Thank you!"
I paused for a moment.
I closed my eyes and smiled.
Then I looked right into her eyes and said, "Thank you. Thank you."
And I realized that encouragement doesn't only go out of the Chick-fil-A window.
Sometimes it comes rushing in through the gracious words of a kind soul who doesn't know she just delivered a kiss from the King.