I was in Starbucks talking with Katie, the barista and my friend. She was the “drink maker girl”, an outstanding one at that. An upbeat and chatty quadriplegic customer in a wheel chair came in and ordered some specially pressed iced coffee, with just the right kind of milk, and the right kind of syrup and the right amount of ice. He asked Katie lots of questions about the drink and the syrups as she was creating this special drink for him. Katie gracefully managed to care for his drink while she cared for a few other customers all at the same time. When Katie came around from the counter to had the man his drink, he requested that she give him a sip to try. He requested a tad more syrup, and then another sip, or two. Back around the counter and back out front she came. Clearly he was edging on asking her to go “above and beyond”. Many baristas would have been annoyed or just out of their comfort zone on this one. Katie did not seem uncomfortable, and if she was, she must have chose to move beyond it for his sake. He asked for her to fix his hat which had creeped down over his eyes a bit, and place his drink in his cup holder. He chatted on about all kinds of stuff in between the service. When Katie gently placed her hands onto his hat and placed it just right upon his head, and lovingly and patiently placed that green straw just right into his mouth, with no impatience or annoyance in her demeanor, and helped him to take a drink of the fine beverage that she made for him, he was elated. “Oh, that is perfect! and makes my day!” He said. Katie had more customers to get to, and some of us tried to take over and see him out the door, so that she could care for her other customers as well. Katie doesn’t just mix drinks, she adds value to people. That is cool.
