"If he can do it, I can do it"

All beginnings are hard. Many years ago I took my first real job. I was hired as a cashier in a restaurant. After a very fast training session, I manned my own cash register. The dinner crowd was just coming in as I stood in my spot. My first customer was an elderly man leaning on a cane. My hands were shaking as I tried to remember what buttons I was supposed to hit. This wonderful man leaned over and whispered, "When you're doing something new, just look over at the next guy and tell yourself...Hey...if they can do it, I can do it."

That man's words stayed with me throughout my working life.Whenever I faced a new challange, I would think about those words. In time I managed a very busy restaurant. When someone was new and nervous, I would repeat the advice given to me. I always repeated the story of when I was new and scared and how his words gave me the confidence I needed that day.

What's really nice is that one day I got the chance to meet his family.. The man  was in a wheel chair and was almost blind. He had been a steady customer and when he stopped coming in, I wondered if he was alright.  I stopped to say hello and tell them how he had made such an impact on my life and in turn, the life of others. The family proudly smiled. I got a chance to thank him and tell his family  how much goodness their father had given the world.