chance encounters working in retail
dear readers,
It surprises me sometimes how much I earnestly love people. Whenever I see anyone at all, I am filled with some kind of jubilation. I know that for many people, life is hard, and that nothing comes easy, but I am truly grateful for every meeting: the chance to glimpse another's world, to offer them a smile, a compliment, and, hopefully, a friendly face.
I first noticed this when I started my job last year. For the first few weeks, I was too timid to serve anyone. But eventually, on a quiet day, I stepped in on the register while one of my coworkers was away, and the role stuck. My job is now one of the highlights of my week. No matter how tired I am, no matter what's gone on in the rest of my week, I find myself renewed by meeting new people again and again, all day.
One particularly quiet day, back in January, I began taking harried notes of my observations of the people I encountered. I had completely forgotten about this until recently, when I came across the notes again.
Reading these back now, it seems strange that I wrote them in the first place, and while I would never share the details publicly, I find them amazing, in a way. Despite how brief each moment was, something about these people will always stay with me. Most of them I'll never see again (though there are a few regulars who return periodically, and who I make sure to chat with when I can). Many more, however, I didn't even get to speak to at all. But in passing, all of these people held a vivacity, and I felt like entire worlds were brushing past mine instantaneously.
I guess, what I love most is the chance to witness people, not as our customers, but as individuals with lives as distinct as they are similar to my own. However briefly we interact, there is a chance to notice, to remember, and to be, though only for a moment, part of the same existence in this world.
thank you for reading!
signed in invisible ink,
luminula xxx