Tôi với anh bạn đang ngồi uống cà phê ở một tiệm nổi tiếng gần Venice. Một người đàn ông bước vô ngồi xuống bàn trống bên cạnh và gọi người phục vụ:
- Hai ly cà phê, một ly trên tường...
Người phục vụ đem một ly cà phê đặt lên bàn cho khách và dán lên tường miếng giấy có ghi chữ “một ly cà phê”. Uống xong người đàn ông trả tiền hai ly rồi ra khỏi quán.
Lát sau có hai người vô quán kêu ba ly cà phê, nhưng chỉ uống có hai ly mà trả tiền ba ly. Người phục vụ lại dán lên tường miếng giấy có ghi chữ “một ly cà phê”.
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| Ly cà phê trên tường |
Vài ngày sau tôi có dịp trở lại quán này, trong lúc đang thưởng thức cà phê thì có một gã ăn mặc tồi tàn bước vô, gã kéo ghế ngồi rồi ngước nhìn lên tường nói to:
- Một ly cà phê trên tường.
Người phục vụ niềm nở mang cà phê cho khách với sự tôn trọng thường lệ. Gã đàn ông uống cà phê xong rời quán mà không trả tiền. Người phục vụ gỡ một miếng giấy khỏi bức tường.
Đây là một ý tưởng tuyệt vời với sự tôn trọng mà cư dân thị trấn này dành cho người nghèo khiến nhiều người trong chúng ta phải xúc động.
Hãy suy ngẫm điều này: một người nghèo muốn thưởng thức một ly cà phê ngon mà không cần phải xin miễn phí, cũng không cần tìm hiểu ai là người đã cho ly cà phê này.
Có lẽ đây là bức tường đẹp nhất mà tôi từng thấy.
Tác giả vô danh.
Ảnh minh hoạ chụp tại quán cà phê ở Emmerlo (Hà lan).
A Cup of Coffee on the Wall
I sat with my friend in a well-known coffee shop in a neighboring town of Venice, the city of lights and water. As we enjoyed our coffee, a man entered and sat on an empty table beside us.
He called the waiter and placed his order saying, Two cups of coffee, one of them there on the wall. We heard this order with rather interest and observed that he was served with one cup of coffee but he paid for two. As soon as he left, the waiter pasted a piece of paper on the wall saying A Cup of Coffee.
While we were still there, two other men entered and ordered three cups of coffee, two on the table and one on the wall. They had two cups of coffee but paid for three and left. This time also, the waiter did the same; he pasted a piece of paper on the wall saying, A Cup of Coffee.
It seemed that this gesture was a norm at this place. However, it was something unique and perplexing for us. Since we had nothing to do with the matter, we finished our coffee, paid the bill and left.
After a few days, we again had a chance to go to this coffee shop. While we were enjoying our coffee, a man entered. The way this man was dressed did not match the standard nor the atmosphere of this coffee shop.
Poverty was evident from the looks on his face. As he seated himself, he looked at the wall and said, one cup of coffee from the wall. The waiter served coffee to this man with the customary respect and dignity.
The man had his coffee and left without paying. We were amazed to watch all this when the waiter took off a piece of paper from the wall and threw it in the dust bin. Now it was no surprise for us the matter was very clear. The great respect for the needy shown by the inhabitants of this town welled up our eyes with tears.
Coffee is not a need of our society neither a necessity of life for us. The point to note is that when we take pleasure in any blessing, maybe we also need to think about those people who appreciate that specific blessing as much as we do but they cannot afford to have it.
Note the character of this waiter, who is playing a consistent and generous role to get the communication going between the affording and the needy with a smile on his face.
Ponder upon this man in need. He enters the coffee shop without having to lower his self-esteem he has no need to ask for a free cup of coffee without asking or knowing about the one who is giving this cup of coffee to him he only looked at the wall, placed an order for himself, enjoyed his coffee and left.
When we analyze this story, along with the other characters, we need to remember the role played by the wall that reflects the generosity and care of the dwellers of this town.
