Noone was expecting him, so as a joke he decided to dress as a waiter and serve at the big, fancy party. He slicked his hair under a cap, donned a uniform, and proceeded to pour drinks, pass hors d’oeuvres, show guests their tables. & in a room full of over 100 ppl—ppl who knew him well!—not 1 person ever realized it was him.
He told me “The surprise was tht they didn’t recognize me. The shock was they never even noticed me.”
This story has helped me make an extra effort to pay attention to people who usually go unnoticed. The housekeeper at the hotel. The busser cleaning the table. The guy filling the hole on the street corner. The police officer who pulled alongside me at a stoplight. I gave them all my full-on respect today. And let them know they were seen & appreciated by at least one person. Me.
Sometimes that’s all it takes.
A little civility can cross big boundaries
