Imagine a few scenarios for me:
You're a teenage girl at the oh so dreadful age of 16. You have dated a little bit here and there but you've never liked a guy enough to invite him over to your house to meet your parents…until now. You're stomach is in knots and over crowded by butterflies, you've checked your hair and make up in the mirror a million times, and changed outfits just as much. Tonight is going to be perfect…it has to be…I mean you're sixteen, everything you do at this age is life or death! Anyway..the doorbell rings…you sprint to the door to be the first thing your darling boyfriend's eyes see when he enters your home…take a deep breath and open the door. He's adorable, you're adorable..its just a big cluster of eye lashes fluttering and jittery giggles…so cute. Then enters dad with a loud "what's up dude!" palm open in the air…a high five! Could you be anymore mortified?!?
Okay guys..here's one for you:
You're hanging out in a club. A sick beat is pounding in your ears, the girls are cute and you're the coolest thing this bar has seen all night..and you haven't even stepped foot on the dance floor yet! In walks Flavio…the Italian stud who transferred from across the pond to play soccer at your school…great. Every chick's radar has switched from you to "foreign" and you're ready to head home and call it a night. But what's this…did Mr. Mysterious seriously just high five the prettiest girl in your Psychology class?!? You just might have a chance after all…
Now here's the last one:
You're sitting in a hut made out of dried palm leaves and wood. The sun is high in the sky and you're certain you've never sweat this much in your life! You've already been up for 6 hours and you have another 10 to go before you can rest your head. You've read the same sentence twenty times, dissected it beyond recognition, and have run out of ways to explain what you are saying so that the ears around you that are yearning so desperately for the understanding of a simple English phrase will be satisfied. You've got nothing left to give for the day but to send the students home until tomorrow. You collapse in the nearest chair as the students gather their things and file out of the room, its then that your day is worth it. When one by one the little hands of Cambodian children raise in the air, and with a "bye teacher!" they slap your hand with as much force as their little bodies can generate.
I don't have a moral to this story as much as I just want to express how sweet simple gestures can be sometimes. Don't ever take that for granted.
