To all the regulars,

It is nice to see you again and I hope your mysterious life is going well. I thank you for being polite and exchanging pleasantries with me for the patron before you was on their phone. This thing we have going is lovely, truly you are one of my favorite faces.

It was strange at first to be on the opposite side of the counter. Yet with one year working in the same café it is one million times more comfortable to be standing on this opposite side. I can’t even imagine the amount of everyday anxiety, frequent choice, and faint wonderings that go through your mind as we exchange small talk and currency, in that order.

It brings me great joy to remember how you all take your coffee, or your soda, or your medium raspberry lemonade with no ice in a plastic cup. There is a familiarity and false intimacy in learning someone's quirks.

It is beautiful to see a familiar face amongst a line of strangers. Especially when that face is accompanied by an unspoken understanding of the pattern of the upcoming interaction. It is strange and wonderful how this unique connection has formed between two strangers.

The relationship between a customer and an employee is vastly underappreciated. It honestly is a very pure and lovely form of human interaction. There is the opportunity for added depth, but really at its core, the interaction revolves around mutual agreement to be pleasant, or simply kind. It's the kind of relationship built off the pattern of an ordering encounter.

Straightforward and sturdy there is no mystery in the proctocol and that alacrity of the roles we play makes for a sturdy 'almost but not quite strangers' connection. I hope you don't mind that with this ignorance of your true character and general characteristics I create whole lives and stories surrounding your visits to this humble cafe establishment. My mind is whirring with possibilities as I take your orders. That's why I sometimes forget the peculiarities of your preference that make you a regular.

Please don't be offended by your nickname whether it be 'cool shirt guy', 'single latte lady', or 'the espresso couple'. I use these calling cards with a smile. And I smile when I steam the milk for your drink. I smile when I see your face light up with gratitude for the granting of a small wish in the form of a cup of tea.

It is difficult to explain why the presence of you regulars makes working so much more delightful. Perhaps it's simply that familiarity breeds contentment. Or maybe it's the elimination of the air of mystery surrounding each patron.

It is also difficult to explain how exciting it is to learn about tidbits of your life and snatches of your character. It's a game of putting together a puzzle with only a few pieices available.

Whatever unique spark of meaning that can be derived from our infrequent but memorable interactions, know that you played an equal part in their discovery. Thank you.

Have a good day and enjoy your coffee,

--the vaguely familiar barista at the cafe you frequent