#1: I secretly love it when kids put toys up on the conveyor belt. Rainbow Dash? And Batman? At my register? Day made.
#2. I have the same conversation sometimes hundreds of times per day. If you scramble a step, sometimes you'll scramble me. (I have told many innocent people who asked for a price check how my day was going.)
#3. Having the same conversation a hundred times doesn't mean I don't mean it every time. And it doesn't mean I'm a robot that won't feel it if you ignore me.
#4. I also forgive people for ignoring me quite a few times a day.
#5. I know you don't want me to circle all the stuff on your receipt, but if a secret shoppers sees me skip it, I could lose my job.
#6. If I'm more nervous with you, it might be that I still have PTSD from the last customer who looked like you. I know that's not fair, but I can't remember faces super well, and when something is traumatic, it can take a little while to feel safe again. (Men with long, gray hair took a long while for me to like again.)
#7. Yes, you are being racially profiled. But not for whether I card you for liquor. For how hard I brace myself for whatever you do after I card you for liquor. There are a million exceptions to every rule, but some groups are more likely to scream at me than others.
#8. Frequent customers that have not screamed at me are a really welcome sight. Seeing your face makes the day a little easier. It's like seeing a little bit of home.
#9. I am not going to remember your name unless it's printed on your chest. When I look at you, all I remember is whether previous interactions have been happy or sad. I can remember if you've screamed, not why. I can remember that I like you, but usually not why.
#10. Maybe one in fifty people who ask how my day is going actually mean it. When you treat me like a person, when you notice that I'm there? It really does make a difference.
Last one:
I'm still going to love you if you're a jerk. I'm still going to wrap your groceries like a present and wish you a wonderful day and mean it. Because you are always going to be more important than the hurt you cause, more important than the mistakes you make. You are worth it, and I get to remind you of that. That's the tiny way that I get to be a hero.
But when you see that I'm there? When you take the time to connect with me as a human being, with a smile, or a joke, or a sincere question, or even remembering my name, I am really grateful for the way you hold me up, the way you help me do my job better and love others better. I'm grateful for you being a hero to me.
Thank you.
