This weekend I took my wife on a surprise trip to see a modern dance performance in Charleston.
Things were going well leading up to the show. We had an awesome dinner in a beautiful restaurant and the opportunity to take a stroll, albeit brisk, through the city on the way to the performance hall.
As we entered, the attendant warned us that we’d be unable to enter the hall once the show started.
With less that ten minutes to spare , we quickly got our tickets scanned and headed to our seats on the balcony. Another helpful attendant saw us searching and began to assist us. Moments into our search it became clear that a group was sitting in our seats.
I quickly pulled up our tickets on my phone to make sure we were in the right spot. That’s when I realized my mistake. Our tickets were for the Friday show, not Saturday.
I had messed up.
With only minutes left to take a seat, a row of tears began to stream down my wife’s cheeks as the thought of missing the show hit her.
Without hesitating, our attendant went to grab a manager. Seconds later a woman hurriedly approached us with words of hope, “Let me call down to ticketing and see if we can get you all replacement tickets.”
I immediately headed to the ticketing booth. Then with, minutes to spare, we received two new tickets.
That alone was amazing but my mind was blown when we arrived at our new seats. Not only had the theater honored my prior purchase, which they had no obligation to do, but they had upgraded us to orchestra seats.
That type of generosity is uncommon, particularly in cases of error like mine. In fact, I’d say the actions of the Gaillard Center team were downright radical in comparison to how most of us are treated when we make a mistake.
As I reflect on that evening and the rarity of our experience, I’m stuck thinking, “How can I show that same type of generosity? Where am I overlooking opportunities to give and do good? Why do I believe my generosity should be earned or even acknowledged?”
Reflection:
When’s the last time you experienced radical generosity?
How did it make you feel?
Looking at your day-to-day life, are there any opportunities for you to show that same type of generosity to someone, even if there actions don’t warrant it?
Sorry for the late essay this week. I’ll be working hard to get these out during Sunday morning. Hope you fellas have a great week!