Life Is What You Make It

Life is What You Make It
By Marilyn Mackenzie



"Fires can't be made with dead embers, nor can enthusiasm be stirred by spiritless men. Enthusiasm in our daily work lightens effort and turns even labor into pleasant tasks." - James Baldwin


Some people make a lasting impression on us. They touch our lives, perhaps making us think or smile, often without even realizing it.

A few years ago, I worked at a church and since my son was home schooling, he went with me to the church every day. Most mornings, we’d stop at a local convenience store, getting a chocolate drink for him and a cappuccino for me.

We could have purchased larger quantities of drinks for him and kept them in the refrigerator at the church. I could have brewed my own coffee there too. There were other stores we could have frequented, for we passed many stores along the way on our daily commute. But the clerk at the store we chose to visit refreshed our lives each day, and so we returned again and again.

Perhaps the store clerk had previously worked in a fast food restaurant, where she learned to ask, "Would you like fries with that?" Perhaps she’d been trained in another retail setting, where she learned, well, about multiple selling.

I prefer to think that she had found her own unique way of enjoying life and her job. I’m not even sure that she was aware that her exuberance for life and her job put a smile upon the face of each customer. Customers did, indeed, return again and again for a dose of good cheer as only that special clerk could give.

When a customer brought cookies to the counter, the clerk could have asked, "Would you like some milk with those cookies?" Instead, she inquired, "Would you like a lottery ticket with those cookies?"

She might have asked me if I wanted a donut with my coffee. Instead she asked, "Would you like some batteries with that coffee?" Of my son with his chocolate drink, she inquired, "Would you like a newspaper with that drink?"

The clerk never asked if a customer wanted chips with their cola purchase, or headache medicine with their beer. Rather, she’d inquire if the customers wanted car oil, or laundry soap, or toilet paper.

Yes, life is what you make of it. This clerk’s method of dealing with what some assume is a boring job, and with the customers she met daily, made the hours in her day more enjoyable. And in doing that, she also refreshed the lives of others and made them laugh.

Sometimes, if my day at the church had been particularly tiring, or if my son’s lessons rather difficult, we’d stop at that store before heading home. We’d giggle as we left the store, the clerk’s words echoing behind us. "Would you like some shampoo with that soda?"

"Do all things without grumbling or disputing…" Philippians 2:14 NAS

"Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men…" Colossians 3:23 NAS



This particular story has been published in a number of non-paying markets - Heartwarmers Newsletter, another inspirational newsletter, and a large company employee newsletter. It also appears in a beautiful magazine - Venice, Gulf Coast Living.