Value to be valued

22nd April 2025

We went for a family dinner on Saturday. When we returned, society was chaotic. I overheard people discussing the absence of water and the uncertainty of when the water supply would resume. The security guard was already frustrated answering the same question. We only needed drinking water, we had abundant of that. I decided not to add to the guard's frustration. The next morning, the water was there however, the flow was too slow. I thought of asking the security guard on my daily grocery shop visit.
"Good morning Uncle. What happened yesterday? When will the water supply resume to its normal?" "Today, the water supply will be a little slower than usual. We expect it to be normal by tomorrow." "Watchman... Watchman..." (A woman kept screaming from the balcony of her house) The watchman did not bother to respond.



We were at the grocery shop in our neighborhood. I took all the stuff I wanted, paid for the same and said, "Thank you" to the shopkeeper and left the shop. My son was observing this. "You bought the stuff and paid duly for it. Then what was the thank you for?", he asked. "We are human, we cannot be so transactional. He is there at the shop all day to attend to customers. If one person says thank you throughout the day, he will look forward to coming to the shop the next day, he will feel valued."
"That is his job. He is earning out of it."
"His job is to give what customers ask for. Helping them fill it in their bags is not his JOB. Providing them options is not his JOB. Besides, he has his life, family, festivals, and weekends, but he chooses to come to shop and serve all the customers. For that, I am thankful to him." "Ohh, ok."
"And what am I losing if I say a Thank You?"
He was quiet.


I was raised with the lesson of respecting a janitor and manager the same. If everyone keeps expecting to be respected first, no one will ever be valued. Recently, after observing similar incidents, he came to me and asked, "Is that the reason why they taught me "Thank You"and"Sorry " as Magic Words in pre-school?" And I said, "Yes" with a broad smile.

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