Thanks Miss Mocha

One thing good about running a cafe is you get to meet strangers from all walks of life and out of the plain ordinary, they can bring colours to yours and sometimes, be able to create self-reflection of our very own.  

There was this customer who came to my cafe last week, she has been here several times, always on her own.  That day, while sipping her usual Mocha, she started telling me about her worry of job security and the danger of losing her income and not being able to pay her bills nor buy the things she enjoys.  And then went on wringing her hands about not being able to find true love and be forever lonely.  

I must have somehow came across as downright friendly for her to dish all that out!  Though I must say, her situation reminded me of someone I know fairly well. 

I can't speak for everyone but I think many of us are wasting time on one common thing - worrying.  We often spend time worrying about unimportant things.  I do. I do get bent out of shape over tiny insults; agonise over silly decisions that won’t matter next week. 

We often spend more time worrying about what we are going to wear, where we want to eat or what we are going to say, than we do enjoying our meals, experiencing what we are doing or having the conversations.

I told the girl, if you are wasting time lamenting over a lack of love, or loss of love, then I am pretty sure you are not spending time paying attention to the people who are already present in her life.

She nodded as if she suddenly got it. 

I told her I have spent a considerable amount of time sitting and ruminating on the nature of my existence and anxiously projecting what could have been.  But I realised just in time, that my time would be much better spent focusing on the work at hand, paying a tad more attention to the people around me, and reveling in the experiences that are happening in this very moment in time - which has proved to have been very rewarding to me.  

To all of us, some planning is necessary, taking action mandatory, but worrying…should REALLY be optional.  

I am grateful to Miss Mocha for giving me that bit of a kind reminder.  Could have treated her that cup, but too bad she insisted paying, left us with a generous tip some more!  

I love my job.