Little Red Bird

Excuse me, miss. Miss, hello, can you please come here. Ma’am, I need a refill. *snaps fingers* Jenn, I need another beer.

That’s what I hear on a daily basis, repeatedly for hours and hours every shift I work. That nagging voice of needy people expecting me to be their slave, which I suppose I am in a way.

I live in a very wealthy town. A town where Mercedes, BMWs, Range Rovers and any other fancy car you can think of get driven around by “soccer moms” and dads who are too busy working to spend any amount of time with their children. That is the kind of town I live in. And not only do I live here, but I get the luxury of serving these ass holes (pardon my language).

I don’t understand how these people can drive around in their precious Lexus, or flash that $20K diamond ring in my face, but yet, when they come to eat at MY restaurant and have ME serve them, and they look at that tip line at the end of their meal and only give me fifteen percent…? Do they REALLY need those extra two or three dollars that bad? Would leaving me an extra five percent hurt them as much as it would help me?

As a server (do not call me a waitress, I hate it), I get paid $2.13 an hour, which all goes to taxes anyways, so I rarely get a paycheck. I solely rely on the generosity of the general public to be able to afford all the expenses in my life. It’s tough, not going to lie. So why do I do it? Why do I put up with all the BS from my needy, selfish, over-analyzing customers?

“Little red bird under a chair
Waiting for the crumbs to fall
Daddy said "Get a job"
Well don't you see, Daddy, how good I am at catching crumbs?”
-Dave Matthews Band

I work hard, and I mean very, very hard for my money. Sometimes I don’t get what I deserve. But I do it, forty hours a week I put up with this crap. I am going to school, I will get a degree, I will get a career and I will leave this place. But, in the meantime, why would I want to be that little red bird that is so proud of its ability to catch crumbs?

“You learn you can do your best even when it’s hard, even when you're tired and maybe hurting a little bit. It feels good to show some courage.”

After working at this sports bar/restaurant for almost a year, I’ve learned many important lessons to help carry me through life. But the most valuable one is by far having the ability to work hard, not complain and just do what you have to do, all with a smile on your face and a positive attitude.

So how does this coincide with my quest to find my ultimate purpose in life? I pride myself on being a hard worker. I pride myself on having the ability to keep a smile on my face when someone is snapping their fingers at me. And one day someone will notice it and appreciate what I do. And when that day comes, I will understand why I put up with it for so long. I will finally be able to say that I am and always will be a better person, all because of this job. I will be one step closer in achieving my goal of finding and understanding my purpose in this messed up, insane, crazy-beautiful life I am living. And I can finally say that I will never, ever be that little red bird.