Back row, left to right, Nancy VanEtten, Claudia Stallings, Waynette Yarmer, Sharon Lakey, and Kathy Thorson. Front, Harriet Warren and Hildur Schiffner
Monday, July 25, 2005
Recent photo of Hildur and daughters
Back row, left to right, Nancy VanEtten, Claudia Stallings, Waynette Yarmer, Sharon Lakey, and Kathy Thorson. Front, Harriet Warren and Hildur Schiffner
Gap Man
The Gap—Store 2529
7301 South Santa Fe Drive
Littleton, CO 80120
RE: Wonderful Service—Cashier 1536999 & Crew
To the Management & Staff:
Just after 5:00 PM on Saturday evening, July 2nd, I found myself standing outside of the Aspen Grove Starbucks drenched in Earl Grey tea and a wedding to attend within the hour. Looking left and right, I spotted the Gap sign and ran to the door.
The staff on duty sensed my dilemma and rushed to my service. “The shirt should be easy; you look like a large.” After matching the shirt to my belt and shoes, one of the crew rushed it off to be steamed. The chinos were next, “Pleated or flat? Cuff or none?” If I hadn’t been vain and tried for one waist size too small, that step would have been as quick as the shirt. I walked out of the dressing room—one crew member snipped tags off my new pants and took my credit card, a second stood with my newly-pressed shirt and a third held out a bag for my old clothes. “You fold; I’ll sign,” I said as I strided toward the register, buttoning the crisp, steam-warm shirt.
Only when seated among the beautiful Hudson Gardens, listening to the violin play the processionals in anticipation of the bride did I sneak a fearful peek at the slip I’d signed for my new clothes and found a pleasant surprise—a discount to boot!
What a wonderful experience and what a sales crew! My faith in the young adults of our time was reinforced twice that evening: by the cheerful professionalism of the sales crew at the Gap and by the charming, intimate smiles of the bride and groom as they danced on their wedding night.
Sorry I didn’t get your names gang, but my gratitude is just as sincere,
Dwight Lakey
7301 South Santa Fe Drive
Littleton, CO 80120
RE: Wonderful Service—Cashier 1536999 & Crew
To the Management & Staff:
Just after 5:00 PM on Saturday evening, July 2nd, I found myself standing outside of the Aspen Grove Starbucks drenched in Earl Grey tea and a wedding to attend within the hour. Looking left and right, I spotted the Gap sign and ran to the door.
The staff on duty sensed my dilemma and rushed to my service. “The shirt should be easy; you look like a large.” After matching the shirt to my belt and shoes, one of the crew rushed it off to be steamed. The chinos were next, “Pleated or flat? Cuff or none?” If I hadn’t been vain and tried for one waist size too small, that step would have been as quick as the shirt. I walked out of the dressing room—one crew member snipped tags off my new pants and took my credit card, a second stood with my newly-pressed shirt and a third held out a bag for my old clothes. “You fold; I’ll sign,” I said as I strided toward the register, buttoning the crisp, steam-warm shirt.
Only when seated among the beautiful Hudson Gardens, listening to the violin play the processionals in anticipation of the bride did I sneak a fearful peek at the slip I’d signed for my new clothes and found a pleasant surprise—a discount to boot!
What a wonderful experience and what a sales crew! My faith in the young adults of our time was reinforced twice that evening: by the cheerful professionalism of the sales crew at the Gap and by the charming, intimate smiles of the bride and groom as they danced on their wedding night.
Sorry I didn’t get your names gang, but my gratitude is just as sincere,
Dwight Lakey
Sunday, July 24, 2005
Left behind
Several years ago, I got into scrapbooking. My first book is about me, about growing up on the farm in Burlington, school days, college, marriage... But, it's those first years of memory that have a golden glow about them. Is it the the constant sun of the place, the wheat, or just the beginning of life that was so golden?
When Mama was closing the house and buildings after the auction, Dwight and I happened to be there for our summer vacation. It felt strange at the lawyer's office as the daughters stood in support of Mama as she was instructed through the pile of legal papers. The lawyer and realtor seemed callous, all paper and no heart. We watched somberly as she put the final pen to paper. When we opened the door to leave the office, Burlington had never looked so bereft.
We rode out to the farm in a somber mood and took our goodbyes. Near sunset, the yard was quiet except for the wind in the trees. Weeds had grown up in the corral and around the carport. Inside the house, we walked one last circle through the rooms, only the fading sun sifting through the windows to give us light.
It was in the middle of the living room where I saw a small, dark form against the carpet. What is here, I wondered, reaching down and lifting it. Soft feathers on a lifeless bird, a sparrow caught inside somehow in the bustle of the auction. I set its holiness back down.
When Mama was closing the house and buildings after the auction, Dwight and I happened to be there for our summer vacation. It felt strange at the lawyer's office as the daughters stood in support of Mama as she was instructed through the pile of legal papers. The lawyer and realtor seemed callous, all paper and no heart. We watched somberly as she put the final pen to paper. When we opened the door to leave the office, Burlington had never looked so bereft.
We rode out to the farm in a somber mood and took our goodbyes. Near sunset, the yard was quiet except for the wind in the trees. Weeds had grown up in the corral and around the carport. Inside the house, we walked one last circle through the rooms, only the fading sun sifting through the windows to give us light.
It was in the middle of the living room where I saw a small, dark form against the carpet. What is here, I wondered, reaching down and lifting it. Soft feathers on a lifeless bird, a sparrow caught inside somehow in the bustle of the auction. I set its holiness back down.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
