One of the great things about being a barista at Starbucks is that any time a customer has a problem and wants to complain about something, you can always say, "Here is my supervisor and he'll answer any of your questions." Then you get to watch all the action from a safe distance.
I just happen to be a supervisor.
On one such occasion, a lady came into my store and wanted to exchange a coffee mug for a new coffee mug. The problem was she did not have a receipt, a big issue when wanting to exchange something at Starbucks. (The policy is there must be a receipt and the purchase has to be within 3 months, neither applied with this lady) She of course began with the barista at the register, who very quickly handed the situation over to me.
She began explaining to me what she wanted and why. She had apparently received a starbucks tumbler at Christmas (this story takes place during April) and some mold had formed on the inside of the cup. So, she wanted to replace it.
My response: "I'm very sorry but our policy states..." This just mad her more mad and replied, "Well where is this policy written? I want to see it!" This threw me off guard. Like there is some Starbucks Bible in the back or something.
The discussion continued as she tried to coerce me to give in and give her what she wanted, but my reply was always, "I'm very sorry, but our policy says..." Finally, when she realized she wasn't getting a free tumbler, she said, "Well this is a tragedy."
I live in one of the most affluent counties in the U.S. with the highest cost of living in the U.S. Million dollar homes housing million dollar attitudes. And here was a lady trying to convince me that this $15 moldy cup was a "tragedy."
9/11, Iranian protesters, Burmese monks protesting, malnutrition in third-world countries, third-world countries, North Korean nuclear threat, poverty, sex trafficking, starvation, women's rights in the Middle East, etc...
How do you even begin to share the gospel, let alone be an incarnational missionary, with someone whose uses the word tragedy to describe a moldy Starbucks cup?
The lady never returned or took up my offer to speak with the store manager. And for all I know her cup is still moldy.
I'm beginning to understand a little more about what Jesus meant when he commented on how difficult it is for the rich to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. "When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful for he had great possessions." Mat. 19:22
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
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3 comments:
great post to put things in perspective and show just how far away from what's important in life people have moved in the west... well, in the west of the west anyway!
I really love this story, it is so true. far to many people make big deals out of something so small.
I used to work in high-end vacation rentals in So Cal, and the tenants who would call saying it was an "emergency" were usually like the lady who said she bought too many flowers and needed more vases. Seriously. And she was miffed when I told her it wasn't an emergency.
We did ministry in California for years, mostly around the uber-rich (we were not). I always said that it takes longer for the rich to come to the end of themselves, i.e. they have the money to hide from their problems by taking a trip, buying a car/house, access to drugs/alcohol, etc.
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