Every Friday, Jack and his management team from Bright Mountain Trucking head to Annette’s for lunch. The food is always top-notch, service is fast and friendly but the star attraction is Annette herself. Whatever “charm” is, she has it. Intelligent, good-looking, able to talk about any number of things, uplifting, full of insights, she’s an easy-going master of interpersonal communication.
The menu arrives. Newly printed each day, it always has a saying.
Today it’s: "Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift. We call it the present.”
The group has broken away from their normal hamburger-and-fries eating and with Annette’s gentle persuasion have learned to eat Specials…a little more expensive but always excellent. “Enlightenment” she calls it. They are never disappointed. Today four go with poulet au fromage (chicken with cheese), lasagna, Quiche Lorraine and seafood au gratin. Ever a skeptic, Bud picks a cheeseburger. After another great lunch, Annette strolls by.
“My friends, how are you today?"
“Good, how about you?"
“Jack, it’s always a better day when you stop by. You are always welcome here. And your trucking business, it goes well?”
“Yeah, not bad.”
“But I detect a strain in your voice. And Bud, Belinda, Fritz, Cary, you all look so serious. You have problems, no?”
“Same old, same old, Annette. We’re struggling to get enough good drivers to haul all the loads. It’s a never-ending problem and it’s getting worse. Our ads aren't getting them to apply like before. Maybe you can figure it out for us,” adds Cary with a smile.
“No, no, I could never solve a problem that you could not solve yourselves. But I did notice something ………cheese.”
“Cheese?”
“Yes, I noticed you all had cheese in your lunches today. Was it satisfactory?”
“It was great“
"It reminds me of a book about cheese I read years ago. Funny little book. Called ‘Who Moved My Cheese’. Can I tell you about it?”
“Please do.”
“There are four mice in a maze. They discover a room full of cheese and they are delighted. Every day they go back to the room and eat to their heart’s content. But one day they return and the cheese is gone. Two mice go off in search of more cheese.
Two others keep returning to the same room each day hoping the cheese will reappear but it never does. They become frustrated and complain. They say it isn’t fair that this should happen to them.
The two others who went off looking for more cheese eventually find it and have more than enough food. They focus on their goal and reach it.“
“I’m not sure I get it“ says Bud. “What’s that got to do with getting drivers?”
“Well, some people…much smarter than me… might say ‘It’s better to light a candle than to curse the darkness’”
"Others might say that someone moved your cheese. You may need to look elsewhere or try new things to get new drivers.”
“More ‘enlightenment’ from Annette’s Diner?”
“Perhaps. That’s for you to decide.”
This story continues…