Smiles are magical things. They have the power to heal and completely brighten up someone’s day. That’s why Bekah Georgy was so touched when a Starbuck’s barista sent her a smile.
She wrote about how the barista’s tiny gesture of kindness helped her change her outlook on life that day.
“Dear barista, You didn’t know me and you didn’t know my story. Most importantly, you probably didn’t know writing the simple word ‘smile’ on my order would change my day for the better,” Georgy wrote on The Mighty. “When you look at me, you might assume I’m happy, bubbly, outgoing and full of life. But you don’t really see the complete me.”
Georgy struggles with anorexia and was having a terrible bout of depression.
“You wouldn’t know that behind this plastered smile is a girl who has broken and fallen to pieces. You wouldn’t know this girl had so much self-hate, she starved herself for over half her young life,” she explained.
“Or that she’s tried to end her own life five times. I’m guessing you didn’t know these past few weeks, and that day particularly had been extremely hard. You were just going about your job, unaware that writing a minuscule word on my drink would change my day and possibly my life.”
Seeing the words “smile” on her cup that day made all the difference.
“Maybe you wrote “smile” on my drink because you saw the feeding tube. Or maybe you could see past my fake smile because you’ve been where I am. Either way, I’m grateful,” she said. “You didn’t have to make my order special. You could have treated me like another annoying customer. But you took that extra second to add some positivity to a life that’s been filled with so much negativity lately.”
Georgy said that the simple act of writing a kind greeting on her cup prevented her from making some unhealthy choices that night.
“You see, my day consisted of a horrible doctor’s appointment and a horrible therapy session,” I was filled with hopelessness, and my suicidal thoughts were getting worse. When my anorexia is bad sometimes coffee is the only thing I can drink. But I was afraid to consume even coffee that day. If I hadn’t encountered that cup, I could have done more damage to myself that night. When I read that word, I couldn’t help but smile, literally.
Georgy wrote the post on The Mighty to let people know just how much our words and actions can affect people, for better or for worse.
“A simple act of kindness can mean the world to someone,” Georgy wrote. “It can provide hope for the hopeless. Now I plan to pass this hope along. So barista, thank you. Thank you for turning my day around.”
You can read her post here.
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