Rada and Arthur

There was this elderly couple who used to come in every Wednesday. There are so many neat things and stories about them, so this post will just kinda be about them. They came in every Wednesday after Rada got her hair done. They were the type of regulars that would sit at the same table and order the same exact thing every single time they came in.

I remember the first time I waited on them, our cook knew exactly how to cook their food before I put it in. After talking with them on a regular basis I learned some interesting things. For one, as an older couple, I had always imagined they were together for 40 or 50 years, the best I can remember, they got married in their early 60's. I also remember seeing them leave one time, and even though Rada drove, Arthur walked her to driver side door and opened it for her. At his advanced age, he moved pretty slow, but still found it important to open her door! I remember complimenting Arthur's shirt one time (it was a real retro cowboy type shirt with the pearl snap buttons) and Rada quipped, "I bet you would look better in it" with a quick wit I am sure she was feisty in her younger days. Many servers and even managers would stop by and say hi every time they came in. Our General Manager would visit with them regularly. In fact Arthur was great at picking winners to big games, like the Super Bowl. He predicted the New York Giants would beat the New England Patriots 2 years ago, in fact he even said the score would be 17-14! Arthur was losing his hearing, so most of the time we would really chat with Rada, and she would relay the info to him by speaking louder.

I remember when I got the news that Rada had passed. The first person I thought of was Arthur. We got invited to the viewing and the funeral as a restaurant. I decided I would stop in at the viewing to pay my respects. It was an amazing thing to see that not only had I come from a restaurant, but another one of their regular servers was there. If the people who waited on me show up at my funeral, I believe that life to be an immense success. Surely friends and family show up to most funerals, but servers that waited on you? That's when I believe it's confirmed we lived in a way that was kind, loving, and caring. Arthur thanked me with and handshake and was moved to tears. It is something about when older people cry, that really pulls at my heart. All the pain and suffering that man faced, and to shed one tear to me, really meant something. We were generations apart, never really knew much about each other, but at that moment, we connected. So, we all wondered if Arthur would ever come in.

The other key thing was they shared one entree and split in on two plates. Who would eat the other half? He did make his way back up to resaurant a few weeks later, all by himself. I made sure to roll out the red carpet and see that he got great service. Weird chain of events that led to us losing power, and the lights kinda flickered on and off for a while. I had no other guests, so I sat and listened to Arthur. As I said before we mainly talked with Rada, so I really didn't know much about him. He proceeded to tell me stories. Like when he worked in the kitchen during his days in the service. Cracking eggs two at a time, he did the hand motion in case I didn't know how it would have looked. He cooked for thousands of service men. He told me about breaking his back, some 60 years ago. He spoke of family memories that brought tears to his eyes. All this while the lights are flickering on and off, most guests left, but not Arthur. It was like he absolutely had to tell me those stories. And I was just chomping at the bit, to hear stories from a man who had seen and experienced so much.

Another tidbit, Arthur used to always give the server a Sacajawea golden dollar as part of their tip. Sad to say, most servers saw it as an inconvenience. I regret not keeping the ones he gave me. Every time I see one of those dollar coins, I think of him. I found out through a co-worker that Arthur had died a few short months after Rada. I believe people can die from a broken heart. As servers, both in restaurants and to God, I feel like maybe we don't give the elderly their due love and attention, and that really breaks my heart. I hope ths post would put a smile on Rada and Arthur's face, cause they sure put a smile on my face.