At Your Service by Maggie Inge

Dining out is a treat for most people these days. It certainly is for me. So, I was particularly appreciative when I was recently treated to a mid-week restaurant meal. Unfortunately, our experience lacked one critical aspect of good service that would have made it a pleasure to be there.

This morning an eagle graced my path. A slight movement in the trees first caught my attention. The strong brown body perched within a barren maple, barely visible; I suddenly saw the stark white head framed against the grey morning sky. Then he spread those wings and took flight – a marvel to behold.

Has anyone else noticed that it is getting harder and harder to understand what people are saying on television? What began as an effort to squeeze more information into each sound bite has grown into a form of rapid speech that is almost impossible to understand.

Location, location, location – it is everything when determining the value of a real estate deal. The factors that are used in an assessment are related to the relationship a piece of property has to various conveniences, services and status symbols. It is the first lesson real estate professionals learn. Similarly, the quality of the service we receive is filtered through a series of conditions that might also be referred to as location, location, location.

“I’m sorry for your loss.” Few phrases in our language are spoken with more sincerity than this one; yet it is also the phrase most likely to have a hollow ring for its listener. It is difficult because both the speaker and the listener have been forced into a confrontation with mortality. These are moments in which few of us are comfortable.