Walter “Buck” Swords was an 89-year-old grump. He was a curmudgeon, complainer, and malcontent whiner for the 7 years he was a customer at the Brownsville, Texas restaurant at which Melina Salazar worked. Melina was patient with him, but Buck couldn’t have cared less, or so it appeared.
He may have been her most challenging customer.
(Source: Central Tang G. Village/Facebook)Each time Buck visited Luby’s, the restaurant where Salazar was a waitress, she met every grumpy growl of discontent from the old man with a smile and kind words. That’s who Salazar was, pretty much the exact opposite of how Buck was. He may have been her most challenging customer, but she provided the same superior service and attitude to everyone she waited on. Salazar is just one of those people who could see the good in everyone.
Turns out Buck had a heart after all.
(victorcristianonet/YouTube/Screenshot)After years of Buck being a daily visitor to Luby’s, Salazar noticed he had stopped showing up. When she found out the news that he had passed away, she was sad, not relieved as some may have felt. Of course, death is never a happy thing, but it would be hard to ignore the reality of Buck’s offensive comments and negativity. But it would soon be revealed that Buck had a heart after all, in a big way.
He looked forward to coming to see her every day.
(victorcristianonet/YouTube/Screenshot)A lawyer stopped by the restaurant a few days before the Christmas holiday and the day after Salazar had learned of his passing, looking for Melina. The lawyer pulled the good-hearted waitress aside for a brief chat.
He told Salazar how much she had meant to Buck and how he had looked forward to coming to see her every day. He let Salazar know that her positive outlook and persistent positivity had not gone unnoticed by her old friend.
But the lawyer wasn’t there just to share loving and kind sentiments from Buck. There was more.
Buck had left her part of his estate.
(victorcristianonet/YouTube/Screenshot)The lawyer informed Salazar that Buck had left her part of his estate in the form of a car and $50,000. The tears started to run as she was given the news.
“I still can’t believe it,” Salazar told KGBT-TV in an interview, according to the Associated Press.
Maya Angelou (1928–2014), the American poet and activist, once said, “You are the sum total of everything you’ve ever seen, heard, eaten, smelled, been told, forgot — it’s all there. Everything influences each of us, and because of that, I try to make sure that my experiences are positive.”
Melina Salazar could have just as easily said that. She certainly exemplifies it.
14 comments:
His full obituary (available on line) seems to indicate that he never married, and his brothers had died. The obit mentions no one else in his life. A loney man perhaps when he came to Brownsville. Sometimes "lonely" is perceived as "grumpy"....but kindness is what lonely people need and appreciate, even if they don't outwardly show that appreciation. He showed his appreciation to this lady in a special way, and because he included her in his will...he had appreciated her for a long time....and that is special.
His veterans hat indicates that he was aboard the USS Lexington, now a museum and open to the public in Corpus Christ. The "Blue Ghost" as she was called was reported sunk by the Japanese during World War II in the Pacific. His hat indicates his pride in his military service and we surely thank him, belatedly, for his service. R.I.P. Buck!
GREAT story.
Not all Anglos are racist, not all Hispanics are bad people but we all share something in common: We are all human, but not all the time humane.
Nice, thanks for sharing.....
Beautiful story. Thank you.
Not all is Lost.
There are angels all around us. All we have to do is look.
"Beer is good God is great and people are crazy"
Thank you for sharing this story. God bless you, Juan and Billie.
It is said that "Gold is where you find it.". Well good people are where you find them. Good people and bad people are all round us. Neither of these traits have anything to do with race, age, wealth or social standing.
"America has no native criminal class of people, save Congress.". Mark Twain
FAKE NEWS !
Anyone else think they were lovers?
How sad that there is always someone who's mind is in the gutter
and tries to pull everyone in that direction. This young lady
was doing her job and should be an example to all those who
have not social skills and manners to treat customers with respect.
A person who thinks in the gutter should stay in the gutter.
Como dijo Kate del castillo "he's single, I'm single, it's just business."
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