When Amy decided to waive the food bill for two firefighters, she did not expect anything in return. However, the heroes wouldn’t let her kindness go unnoticed.
There are two kinds of cheese omelets in the world: the ones Amy makes and every other cheese omelet you’ve ever had.
It is the recipe that got Amy hired at the Good Times motel, made her employee of the month more often than she could count, and helped her get promoted to supervisor.
She didn’t have to chop vegetables, clean the fryer, or cook at the diner anymore. But she would do anything for the place that was the bread and butter for her and her father.
Her cheese omelet was only the second-best thing about Amy. The first was her willingness to be kind and friendly without expectation.
Every kid and pregnant woman who walked into the diner got a free chocolate chip cookie. Every elderly couple got a complimentary breakfast muffin. And Amy fought for the whole staff to get a hearty breakfast of bacon and eggs before starting their day.
Amy would prepare this breakfast for the employees, including the cleaning crew. She was the first one to arrive and, often, the last one to leave the diner. Unless, of course, her father had an emergency, she had to rush home.
One morning, Amy was taking orders around the diner floor when she overheard the conversation at table four.
“What you did there was terrific, Mason! It was tricky bringing the bedridden old lady safely out of the fire. For a moment, I thought you were gone, buddy.”
To this, the other man replied, “Yeah, it was difficult, but hey, that’s our job. And you were the hero today, Gordon. The way you carried that girl on your shoulder and her puppy in your hand. It’s going to be on the front page tomorrow, I’m telling you.”
Amy quickly recognized that the two firefighters had been talking about the previous night’s fire at the dusty old motel on the other end of the road.
“I don’t care about being in the papers. The little girl and her puppy reminded me of my own daughter. She’s constantly asking for a puppy, too, you know.”
Amy was moved by the bravery and sincerity of the two men. She wanted to show her appreciation for their selfless service. And after a moment of thought, she knew exactly how she was going to do it.
When the men checked the bill left for them, they were surprised. The entire amount had been struck across, and there was a note next to it that said:
“Real-life superheroes don’t pay for breakfast here. Thank you for your service. This is our little way of paying you back. Come back soon!”
The two firefighters were touched by this kindness. They specifically asked to see the person who wrote the note. That’s when they learned that Amy was the woman whose magic hands made those delicious omelets, too.
“This is incredibly kind of you,” Gordon said. “We absolutely loved the food, and we’re thinking of bringing a few friends here this evening.”
“That would be an absolute honor,” Amy beamed with eagerness.
“We’ll be here, provided you let us pay,” Mason insisted.
“We’ll see about that,” Amy smiled as she waved them goodbye.
When Mason and Gordon returned to the diner with a bunch of friends that evening, they had an incredible time. It was a long time since all the men had gotten together, sat back, and enjoyed a heavy meal.
They had told their friends about the unexpected kindness they received that morning, and Mason suggested, “Let’s all leave a generous tip for these guys.” The group agreed.
Then Mason and Gordon noticed that Amy wasn’t around. They asked a waitress about it and learned that she had to rush back home early because her father had a fall.
While leaving, they asked for Amy’s address.
Meanwhile, Amy wondered if the firemen had shown up again that evening. She also wondered if the fryer had been deep-cleaned thoroughly and if the staff would do okay the following day. Amy had to take the day off to care for her father.
The following morning, when she was making her father breakfast, there was a knock on her door. She answered it and stood at the door in shock for a few seconds.
It was the firefighters from the previous morning! She didn’t quite understand why they were there or how they found her place.
“Gentlemen! How… what can I do for you?”
Mason and Gordon smiled at Amy’s visible nervousness.
“We know about your father, Amy,” Mason said.
Amy was still confused.
“Yeah. Thanks to Mr. Technology over here,” Gordon said, pointing teasingly at Mason, “we found your GoFundMe page. That’s when we realized that your father was desperately in need of a wheelchair.”
“We heard he had a fall yesterday. Is he doing okay?” Mason asked.
Amy explained that one of the wheels of his old wheelchair had broken for the fourth time, causing her father to fall.
You don’t have to worry about that anymore.” Mason smiled and opened the back of the firetruck they had arrived in.
To Amy’s surprise, the man rolled out a sparkling new wheelchair. “This is for your dad.” Amy was speechless as the men went on to explain the features of the semi-automatic wheelchair.
“You have no idea how much this means. I’ve been trying to raise money since last year, but to no avail. This solves everything!” Amy cried as she imagined how much her dad would enjoy the new wheelchair.
“Well, it doesn’t solve everything,” Gordon said. “When we asked for your address at the diner yesterday, we realized that you changed three buses to get there every day. We know that your car broke down about two years ago and that you haven’t had the money to fix it.”
Amy was astonished at how much they knew about her life and her struggles.
“Of course, we could’ve raised money and got you a new car. But we knew that wouldn’t have been practical. So here’s what we did instead.”
By now, a few passersby and neighbors had gathered around.
The two firefighters asked people to make their way. Everyone looked at the end of the street in anticipation. And sure enough, a special new car drove up to the front of the house.
It was no ordinary vehicle. When Amy saw it up close, it took her breath away. Until that day, she had only seen it in magazines and websites. It was a BraunAbility Entervan – a high-end vehicle designed to transport wheelchair-borne people.
Her knees were weak in disbelief, and she almost collapsed. “I cannot possibly accept this!”
“You deserve all of this and more. Kindness is rare in this world. We know because day in and day out, we see that there is so much selfishness, hatred, and darkness. Your kindness and light need to be held up and celebrated.”
Amy pulled the men closer and embraced them, tears rolling down her eyes. She knew what the gentlemen had done for her had changed her life.