If you were to offer a thirsty man all wisdom,
you would not please him more than if you gave him a drink.
~ Sophocles ~
It’s August. It’s oppressively hot in most of the U.S. There is a simple and inexpensive thing that you can do to brighten somebody’s day. Offer them a drink of cold water.
For years, we have kept bottles of cold water on hand in our refrigerator. We routinely hand them out people who do work for us or deliver packages. Our UPS deliveryman says that we are the only customers who have ever done this for him. Our lawn mowing/trimming crew, trash collector, postal worker, and various repair folks all say the same thing. You would not believe the radiant smiles and expressions of gratitude that we get for such a simple and unexpected gift!
Service people work hard for a living, particularly this time of year. I hope that you will consider starting a similar tradition of your own!
What a sweet thing to do! We are not allowed to give anything to our mailman and he's about the only one who is around, but for all the heat oppressed states where there are many out in the sun, what a gift!
ReplyDeleteNo one who comes to our house gets out without something to drink...It's RUDE not to offer, Winter or Summer. If I have a snack to give, I offer that a well. Most refuse but not all...and they all thank me profusely...It's just good manners. I cannot believe all people don't do it!
ReplyDeleteExcellent reminder Miz Donna!!
hughugs
We've been doing this for years, also. Before there was "bottled water" everywhere, I kept a supply of the plastic cups with lids and long straws to fill will cold drinks so they could just take the cups with them. It's always truly appreciated!
ReplyDeletewhat a fabulous thing to do. I'm rarely home when the mailman comes though. Not to mention he comes in to the store I work at and he's a real jerk....lol
ReplyDeleteVery nice thought and really neat image.
ReplyDeleteYep, I agree.
ReplyDeleteGreat image. I think it's important to offer your service/people in your life some kindness. A bottle of water seems such a simple thing to do.
ReplyDeleteThat's a wonderful thing to do. Last week when I was having U-verse installed after a few hours the guy asked me for a glass of ice water! I was embarrased that I didn't think to offer him one before he asked!
ReplyDeleteSuch a great idea, and such a simple thing that it is often overlooked. We have a second refrigerator in our garage and keep it stocked with -- well, not so much soda pop these days as we are trying to avoid it, but always water. And yes, it is always gratefully accepted when offered to the wonderful guys and gals who come by to perform some service or other. Here in South Carolina (as I'm sure there in Tennessee), it seems like everyone who visits our property, from the Terminix guy to pool service people to the one who take care of our HVAC, is a personal friend to whom you want to extend hospitality. But even strangers get thirsty and crave kindness!
ReplyDeleteThis post reminded me of a great article I read this week on Robert Fulghum's web site. He's the one who wrote All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten and I think you'll like his take on the subject of a drink of water.
Hope you don't mind my leaving a link and I hope it works ... if not, you can copy and paste!
http://robertfulghum.com/index.php/fulghumweb/entry/2096_on_being_rich/
Hi..haven't visited for awhile. I see you've been busy!! I do see you on Twitter..us and our rants LOL
ReplyDeleteGreat idea about the water!! I'm having so many blogger issues, it's hard to comment much.
I'm trying :) ((Hugs))