The Pancake Princess

 

Early morning. On vacation in Arizona and desperate for coffee. After taking a delightful walk in the cool crisp air, enjoying all the different Cactus, my husband and I stopped by the local “dive” diner. Our son recommended it and joined us, but we didn’t expect a real “surprise”. As the waitress approached, I first noticed she was wearing a tiara. Then I spied unicorn emblems on her fanny pack. And to top it off, her earrings were dragonflies. I asked if she was a Queen, but she said she was a Princess. She wore it everyday and clarified it   was not for a special occasion.  I remembered how my granddaughter corrected me when I once asked if she were a Princess, but she firmly announced, “I AM QUEEN,” as in Queen Elsa from Frozen.

For this past Halloween the staff told our waitress she couldn’t wear her “normal” outfit that day, so she had to dress as something else. She came as the Good Witch instead and winked at us. When we were ready to order breakfast, she heartily recommended the blueberry pancakes, and yes, they were incredibly awesome with fresh blueberries, nuts, whole wheat pancakes and whipped cream! What started as a normal “fuel up” meal turned into a memorable experience.

Have you ever had a “normal” expectation transform into something extraordinary?

My husband likes to come home and say “I have a surprise for you,” and it is usually something that he picks up while grocery shopping… it may be coffee chocolate chip ice cream or a certain pasta we like but never seems in stock. A normal task becomes a gift.

Children can be especially good at surprises and gifts. During the pandemic, my husband and I spent two hours on Zoom with my granddaughter, six. We had lessons and creative projects that we’d sent ahead of time to my daughter-in-law. One lesson was about writing a story. We had started one for her and each of us needed a name. She was Delilah, the Great Queen. My husband was Merlin the Bungler (who turns into Merlin the Great). I didn’t have a name yet. So, my husband asked her what should Oma be called? She said, “Oma, the Good and the Love.” Well, you can imagine how that made me feel. Tears welling in my eyes, we continued to write our fairy tale.

What’s your experience with either something happening to you or what you made happen for someone else? Who could have envisioned encountering The Pancake Princess in a small town in Arizona?

Sometimes it’s just the small things that can make a memory of a lifetime.