Orange Juice Man

This morning, I went to buy orange juice.

This isn't a new thing for me.  In fact, it's almost a daily occurrence.  With fresh squeezed orange juice costing 5Q (about 60 cents), it's a really hard thing to pass up.  It's SO GOOD!   They serve it in a bag, with a straw, and you just walk away smiling like an idiot because you're so happy.  I think that in heaven, Jesus and I will be drinking orange juice out of a bag as we talk about life.

Anyways, as I was saying, I went to buy orange juice today, and I decided to try out a new guy.

As I will probably begin alluding to a lot, there is a lack of critical thinking that is taught in school here; uniformity is valued much more than individualism and creative problem solving, particularly in the public school system. This fact is especially true if you are talking about education for the older generations who live in Guatemala.

Case in point: Orange Juice.  There are so many vendors, and this man is the epitome of that.  His daily stand is about four meters from the corner of a street and another stand is six meters on the other side... aka as a crow flies, they are umm... (thanks to the Pythagorean Theorem...) 7.7meters away from one another.  So, normally, I walk past these two vendors with my juice (purchased two blocks earlier) and try not to look at them as I feel bad that their businesses are so similar and therefore doomed to lack in success.

But today was different.  I walked down a different street this morning and missed my early person so I came up to the "double juiced" corner. I was a bit nervous about the decision but the little man was just standing there juicing away while his around the corner comrade was no where to be seen.  So, I went to the little man.  Due to the warm culture here, it is necessary to budget at least 2 minutes for the orange juice exchange, but once it took 15 minutes (I haven't had time to return to that lady... it is an investment!), I knew that I had about 5 minutes to spare on my "schedule" to get to class, so I stopped and asked for some orange juice.


"How much does orange juice cost?" 
"5Q"
"Can I have one please?"
"Of course. Just hold on, I need to juice a lot more."
then, he takes a bunch or oranges, washes them, and begins cutting them and juicing them.
"How are you today?"
"I am alive and well, Gracias a Dios.  and you?"
"I am doing quite well. It is a beautiful day."
"That is true. I am grateful to be alive.  Every day is a gift" 
"You usually walk past here with a friend, right?"
"Yes."
"You guys usually look really happy."
"Thanks"
I think:  wow!  This guy is super genuine and remembers a whole lot for being an old man.
he is still juicing away.
"Okay.  That should be sufficient"
then he walks away and talks to a truck down the street.
I think: what is he doing?
then he returns.  With a glass.  And he washes it and pours my orange juice. It is missing about 3cm.
"Hold on."
and he begins juicing again
"It's okay, really" 
I think:  Okay... it's been over 5 minutes, I'm going to get the ever fun opportunity of running to school now...
"No, it's not.  It's missing some."
so he keeps on juicing.
"I can't give you less than you asked for; it's not right."
I think:  wow!  that's the definition of integrity!
"Wow - okay, thank you"
and he pours the remaining 3cm into the glass and the glass into the bag and gives me a straw.
"Go with God and have a great day"
"You too!  Thank you!"

And there you have it.  Right at a time when I am frustrated with mysterious parasitelike substances taking over my intestines, living in a rejoiceful flea free time but wondering when the next attack will be, and bracing myself for the next onslaught of 250 elementary school kids learning the ABCs, this man, lacking in teeth, gives me three life lessons.
1) Every day is a good day (especially when you have orange juice)... it's probably just a state of mind that makes it a bad one; you forget that God is there.
2) There are still people in this world who are genuinely interested in you and your life (and they aren't all creepy!).  and
3) Integrity and honesty are still alive.

Thank you orange juice man!