What a Difference a Word Makes....

Have a nice day!
Have a great day!
Have a super day!

These are phrases I am very used to hearing, aren't you? I hear them about as often as I hear the word, "Hello". At nearly the end of every transaction at a store, bank, or doctor's office....usually you hear these sentiments in one form or another. It seems that the phrase is stated so automatically that it is sort of simply another option for saying "Goodbye".

At the McDonald's nearest our home I often go through the drive through to order a Diet Coke to drink while I'm grocery shopping. I did so today. There is this one gal who works there taking the money at the drive-through. She is a lovely young woman whose country of origin, I am guessing, is India. Each and every time she encounters customers she accepts the money then smiles pleasantly and says "Have a blessed day!" There is something so refreshingly unusual and encouraging about the word "blessed".

I was thinking about this in greater detail as I left her and her cheery self and drove on to the next window and retrieved my Diet Coke. I realized that her 'blessing' on me had caused me to smile.... and given my spirits a lift.
And then I thought of the great number of people she 'touches' with a blessing each day! What a difference this McDonald's worker might be making in many people's lives. And she may never even know! It's possible that there are many people depressed and discouraged, sad and downhearted, but her "Have a blessed day" comment lightens their load and brightens their day.

Also, I realized that she didn't "bless" me because I had done anything nice to her; all I had done was place my order, reach out my arm and hand her the money. Yet, she was ready to give out a blessing to me, as she does to every driver who passes her window during her 8-hour shift. She's a giver not a taker; a risk-taker not merely a responder.

Isn't it great that there are still people like this in the world?
We all have such great power in the words we offer people.
In this world where slang is king and curses abound, let's offer a change in atmosphere. And like this young lady at McDonald's, let's choose our words purposely. One postive word spoken from the heart at the right time in the right place can make a huge difference!