Do you have the habit of initiating small talk with people you meet?

During our drive today, we got to stop at a Mexican fast food joint. We stepped inside and were looking at the menu. Someone from the other side of the counter peeked over and recommended a few items that we would like.

I wondered, how quickly did the person profile us just by looking at us, to recommend the exact thing we will end up buying…

There was no technology, no devices, no AI, no systems, just people talking and conversing. It felt refreshing. I actually ended up ordering exactly the same item that she had recommended, and ended up loving it.

While paying at the counter, she was talking and we instantly connected about our kids and their colleges. Her daughter had got into Brown university for Astro Physics. It was a moment of joy and she was brimming with pride about her daughter’s accomplishments. I was sooo happy for her.

I was a stranger who she met for the first time, and yet it was a great opportunity to partake in her happiness. I was there with my family and we all cheered for her & her daughter, and chatted with her and listened to her sharing her experiences, and shared our recent experiences on the same topics.

We laughed at her husband’s comment that he feels that his sole purpose of life seems to be to pay for his daughter’s college. That is why he was born – just to earn money to pay for his daughter’s college 🙂 What a simple way to explain how a normal family believes in the education system, and works to provide the best education for their children, to do better than them in life.

Sometimes we meet some people in life, who leave a mark – just by being themselves. This was an interaction we will remember for long.