A Note of Appreciation
A Note of Appreciation By Teak Kilmer West Eagle Lake Drive, Maple Grove, MN, summer, 1987… rural mail boxes about 400 feet from my girlfriend’s townhouse … door bell rings; mail man: “Hi, I thought you’d like to know. There’s no stamp on this envelope. Wouldn’t want it to be late for someone’s birthday or something, so I rang the bell.” “Wow,” I replied, “thanks. I’ll go get a stamp.” We introduced ourselves when I returned and did our ‘good byes.’ I then reflected that he had (for a time-harried mailman) gone considerably out of his way and ultimately took time from his own personal life; I wondered how often he might be so generous. I wondered if he has been appreciated. I, with nephews’ crayons doodled some crude art and wrote thank you sentiments – acknowledged his kindness and sacrifice (especially for someone he had never met) and left it in the mail box. When we retrieved the post two days later, there was an unstamped envelope with my name on it. The note inside rea