Sunday, March 13, 2011

A little tribute

It has been a crazy past few weeks. I was so happy when this weekend finally came along. Although we stayed pretty busy moving Graydon's grandparents out, I feel like we still had a good time.

Speaking of time. I feel so weird right now. Things have changed so much in just a short amount of time. I can hardly believe that my routine has changed so abruptly. I know that this is a good change but I can't help but be extremely sentimental about all the wonderful times I've had working at the restaurant for the past 4 years. I still remember the first time I walked in there. Graydon was holding my hand, it was our last day together before he left on his mission. My entire family was painting the walls brown and beige and some family friends were taking down old decorations from the Chinese restaurant. I led Graydon through some upturn furniture, past old bottles of soy sauce and plates stacked along the tables. We glanced around a bit, I knew I didn't want to stay too long since I had so little time left with Gray. I told him it would be transformed when he got back from his mission.

I had been there almost every day since that moment. I remember scraping gum from under the booths and sobbing because I missed Gray so much. I remember serving my first table and not knowing a single item on the menu. I remember realizing that I needed to brush up on Thai because I didn't know what I was talking about most of the time to the cooks. The restaurant was my home. I spent my weekend nights serving only to return home to watch some rented videos before bed. Eventually I began making friends with our fellow servers. I am so sad that I will not have Erin to make fun of Studio 5 with anymore or to talk to her about having missionaries out.

I think the best part of the restaurant was being able to work with my family. I saw my mom every day and Michelle before Will-man was born. I loved having their support and being able to put my complete trust in them. My mom is the hardest worker I know and I want to be like her someday. I want to be confident in how I talk to people and have the same patience that she shows with difficult employees/customers/etc. I am so grateful that I was able to work with her for 4 years. I know I wouldn't have learned as much if I decided to work elsewhere. I am so glad I was able to acquire more than just knowledge of the food industry. I learned priceless advice about how to treat people, not only in a business setting but in a personal intimate setting. I learned how to cook, which is something that I know I will pass down to my children.

I know I'm acting like I'm never going to see the restaurant anymore. I will probably be eating lunch there ever day...but I can't help but feel so emotionally attached to this place that provided me comfort when I was the loneliest and money when I was definitely the poorest. It has always been there for me when I really had no place to go. I hope in someway I made some impact on it while I was there. I do know that it changed my life more than anything.

I'm starting my new job tomorrow. I really hope that I can use everything that the restaurant has taught me for this new position. I am definitely going to be out of my element for awhile but I am so excited for it at the same time! I am going to be working in a setting where I don't have to stand for 5 hours straight!

Anyway, this was my tribute to the restaurant. It is a magical little place and I will never take it for granted again. I am going to eat there tomorrow most likely...I'm already craving Thai food.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

i'm in a perpetual state of craving simply thai.

what is your new job??!

Marcella said...

hey hey! I don't know if i should reply here or elsewhere. I'm working at ACS as an HR Analyst. It is all very exciting but lots to learn!