Wednesday, March 1, 2006

Is the Northern Star, Septentrional?

Word of the day:  septentrional\sep-TEN-tree-uh-nul\ adjective:  northern.

Would the Northern Star qualify as a "septentrional" item?

Years ago, a 10-year old boy approached the counter of a soda shop and climbed on to a stool.  "What does an ice cream sundae cost?" he asked the waitress.  "Fifty cents," she replied.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

The youngster reached deep in his pockets and pulled out an assortment of change, counting it carefully as the waitress grew impatient.  She had "bigger" customers to wait on. 

"Well, how much would just plain ice cream be?" the boy asked.  The waitress responded with a noticeable annoyance in her voice, "Thirty-five cents."

Again, the boy slowly counted his money.  "May I have some plain ice cream in a dish then, please?"  He gave the waitress the correct amount, and she brought him the ice cream.

Later, the waitress returned to clear the boy's dish and when she picked it up, she felt a lump in her throat.  There on the counter the boy had left two nickels and five pennies.  She realized that he had had enough money for the sundae, but sacrificed it so that he could leave her a tip.

The moral:  Before passing judgment, first and foremost treat others with courtesy, dignity, and respect.

I like this story, but I don't fully agree with its moral, personally.  Myself, I try not to judge others period.  I've not been granted, nor have been vested of the authority to judge others.  Most importantly, I don't want that authority.

No comments: