Dear People of the New Jersey Turnpike Authority:
Maybe you haven't heard, and maybe you hear it all too often: no one likes driving through New Jersey on the New Jersey Turnpike. It's clogged with traffic and tolls. Some of the view is clogged, too, and so, alas, is some of the air.
On a recent trip to deliver offspring and belongings to a college outside Philadelphia, I geared myself up to Go the Distance on the New Jersey Turnpike. As I arrived at the first tollbooth, I handed my money to a member of your staff who greeted me with warmth and sent me off with a wave. That brief moment gave me a little boost. The next tollbooth experience was equally pleasant; this person seemed genuinely pleased to have my car finally reach his booth, as if he had been watching the horizon for our arrival.
Every single tollbooth stop -- all the way to Philly and all the way back home -- was the same: each tollbooth operator looked me in the eye, asked me how I was doing, added some friendly tidbit of commentary or news, and sent me off with good wishes and a wave. These periodic encounters punctuated my trip with sips of delight, and made the whole trip so much more pleasant than it might otherwise have been.
Please thank your tollbooth operators for these small acts of kindness. Let them know they made a difference in my day, and that each time they were so friendly they sent out a ripple of light.
paula chu
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I have this huge grin on my face. You can't see it so I thought I'd best describe it. You know, in these letters you have sent out into the world, affirming what crosses your path, you do what the toll booth operators were doing for you. You don't forget that "we belong to each other". Thanks for sharing this sweetness of yours. Namaste, p.
ReplyDeleteDear Paula,
ReplyDeleteI'm afraid I share your dread of the NJ Turnpike! "Gearing up" is a wonderful way of describing the resoluteness one must don to drive it even in the service of one's beloved offspring. But, your pleasant, brief encounters with unexpected acts of friendship along the way make me want to throw my transponder out the window. Perhaps, I am missing the milk of human kindness, although not the lines, at the tollbooths. Or, perhaps, YOU bring out the best in people!
Oh, no! I was hoping I wouldn't have to confess this: I have since bought a transponder. :-/
ReplyDeleteAnd my confession is that I had to google transponder :-). You two are far more techno savvy than I am.
ReplyDelete...and what kind of response did you get from the NJ turnpike? : )
ReplyDeleteShare!
Right! They wrote a very nice note of thanks. They were kind enough to send a copy of their monthly newsletter to NJ Turnpike staff, featuring my letter at the top, and congratulating tollbooth team for a job well done. Mission accomplished. :-)
ReplyDelete