One of our malls puts on a seniors appreciation lunch every December. Today was the day. We arrived around 10:30 AM. Most tables in the food court were full. Seniors started lining up about 11:00 to get their lunch. Lunch was started at 11:30.
The lunch was catered by Tim Hortons so we had soup, sandwich, juice , cookies and coffee on a sort of all you can eat basis.
And there was appropriate music. There was as seniors jug band which played Christmas tunes and popular tunes from "a while ago." A young guy played guitar and sang, seasonal tunes and other great tunes like Four Strong Winds. A very popular older country and western entertainer played and sang.
So it was a good time and with the music you could have hung around most of the afternoon.
Now when Mr Introvert says he enjoyed it , it had to be good. Mr Introvert would rather be visiting in a small group or out in the bush wandering around. I have been dragged kicking and screaming to this event before but today I honestly enjoyed it. The only downer was that the micro manager didn't get there in time to get her coupon for a free picture with Santa!!!
Next year I'll make sure I take my camera!
I do things just because they have to be done. I don't look for a pat on the back or even a thank you.
Five years ago a friend asked if I would be an emergency house in case his kids needed something on the way to school. My house is between his house and the school so it was very convenient.
Over the five years I was not called on for any assistance whatsoever. The kids didn't have a problem where they needed to come to my place.
On the other hand I had quite a few very good visits. If I was out in the yard they would stop for a visit. Conversation was easy with both kids. I usually went away having learned something or having a good laugh .
The only serious incident turned out to be funny. One day after school I was talking to the little girl. Apparently somebody drove around the block three times to check on the man talking to the little girl. After three times they decided I was okay but reported to her Dad. Their Dad had a big laugh and related the story to me.
This was the last year for me to watch the kids. They both go to another school next year.
The other day I answered a knock on the door and the kids were there with a thank you card. I was blown away. I didn't expect anything. They both said how much they appreciated having the security of being able to check in at my house. They promised to check on me and have a visit once in a while.
Surprise appreciation is the best.
This morning one of my friends on Face Book or some place made the statement to me"You are appreciated." My wrinkled brow wrinkled more than ever and I began to think about appreciation. I know what my friend was referring to but it still caught me by surprise. It was a powerful little statement.
So I spent all day thinking about appreciation. I even looked the word up in the dictionary. So I was recognized with gratitude for support in a difficult situation.
For me appreciation always seems to be the other way around. I appreciate being able to help others or to support them when they need support. I guess it comes from my experience as a teacher where I was helping others. To see kids succeed was always a very positive experience. I was proud so see the progress kids would make.
I liked to teach modified classes. This means I would be given a dozen kids in a class who had various challenges. Some were behaviour problems. Some had learning disabilities. Some had a lack of ability. It was not the way to group kids but it separated kids from regular classes where they would be harassed. One guy I will never forget. He was grade nine and only knew times tables to five and could only divide with one place divisors. Achievement was slow. He talked about remote controlled bombs which worried me about his future. When he did make progress his eyes always lit up. He really wanted to learn. Today he has a company worth over 800 000 000 dollars. He used his remote control idea. He developed a system to control remote gas wells using computers of course. This guy has always stuck in my mind. I really appreciate what he has accomplished because of the limited skills he had.
So for me appreciation has always been from my end. It was a shock today to be told I was appreciated. Many times we appreciate things and do not say so. This was a good lesson for me today. It's good to just plainly say to people "You are appreciated."
