A Show of Compassion

The man at her table frowned
when the waitress said, ‘‘No apple pie.’’
True, maybe she seemed too eager, 
awkward, young, hands trembling
as she spilled coffee in the saucer
and he said, ‘‘Clumsy!’’ loud enough
for her to hear. But she did not
eat the apple pie.
Perhaps she was new, just hired,
needed the job, tried to learn.
A kind word, a show of compassion
from a customer and she could
tell her mother, ‘‘I like my work.’’