Tip of a Lifetime: Waitress Receives $50,000 and a Buick

Isn't this from the plot of a movie? Didn't Nicolas Cage win a lottery and take a waitress away from it all?

It's really happened. Not exactly the same story line, but a waitress in Harlingen, Texas received the tip of a lifetime. It wasn't left on the dinner table or palmed in passing. According to KGBT Team 4 News, in Harlingen, a waitress was willed $50,000 and a 2000 Buick by a customer, Walter "Buck" Swords, who died in July. She learned of her good fortune only days before Christmas, according to Yahoo News.

What a Christmas gift!

The posthumous tip was left to Melina Salizar by a regular customer at Luby's cafeteria. Salizar described 89 year-old Swords as, "kind of mean," according to KGBT. Yahoo News reports that she cheerfully served her way to the big tip despite Swords surly demands.

We can learn a couple things from Melina Salizar's windfall.

First, it's probably inappropriate to call it a "windfall." The term "windfall" speaks of chance and good luck. Salizar's tip was the result of her kindness to an old man she knew nothing about. She treated him with kindness and respect, regardless of his temperament. I think it's fair to say that Salizar is reaping what she has shown. Salizar appears to have lived by the Golden Rule in her daily routine at Luby's. In the end, it paid off for her financially.

I don't believe all rewards are financial. We reap the harvest of our actions and decisions in many ways. Finances are one of life's many rewards, including health, happiness, hope, strength, longevity, and satisfaction. The list of life's rewards goes on and on. The point is Melina Salizar was rewarded, in an odd way, by her kindness. What rewards might we reap if we treat others with the kindness and respect everyone deserves?

Secondly, we never know with whom we are dealing. To quote a Sacred Text, "some entertain angels unaware." Angels, millionaires, and paupers all deserve to be treated with respect and dignity.