Talking with Eden who is turning 6 on the 13th while waiting for lunch

I was waiting for my 2 veggie spring rolls from the cart just off The Square in Madison over my lunch hour yesterday and in front of me in line were a man and his little daughter. The man had many tatoos and he seemed very kind. The daughter had long brown hair and was jumping all over the place. Another man in line in front of me wished her happy birthday because she had one of those birthday star badges on. We all started guessing how old she would be and if she would have cake etc.

Now, let me explain. I like the food at this cart a lot and I think it's probably a healthier choice for lunch than other options, so sometimes I go there. I can only go there when I am feeling patient, though, because they make your order while you wait and the people who work there do not move quickly. No.

They move s-l-o-w-l-y.

I only have, technically, 45 minutes for lunch and it takes me 5-10 minutes to walk there and 5-10 minutes to walk back, so I usually start to feel some anxiety if I have to wait in line for more than a minute and a half for my lunch. But with this place, the people in line are usually so interesting that I use the opportunity to practice being in the present moment. I try to remember to breathe. I really look at the people and things around me. I feel the air on my skin. I watch the clouds move by. I make up stories about the people walking by. I talk to strangers. I even sometimes run through a lovingkindness meditation. Then, when my food is finally ready. I take it back to my desk to sit down and enjoy it as mindfully as I can.

So, even though I think I waited a REALLY LONG TIME for my food yesterday it was quite worth it because I also got to reconnect with the world around me and really APPRECIATE my food. Amen.