I went to the Apple Store in Town Square Friday morning. I love the Apple store. The staff is diverse and knowledgeable and they don’t pressure me to buy anything. They don’t have to because their reputation is stellar and their products practically sell themselves. This particular day I had a difficult time finding a parking place anywhere near the store. I buy the darkest, prescription glasses I can find, and still the Vegas sun is blinding as I’m driving through the parking lot trying to find a space. Eventually I find a space on the top floor where the sun is so bright I really can’t see and practically run into a man getting off the elevator as I am getting on. We both apologize as I hit the elevator button. I am getting a bit irritated by the time I get to Apple. The store is full, and people are buzzing around–some are looking for a particular item–children are playing with the computers and holding on to the coat-tail of parents as they are scanniing the shelves. I see a staff person and I ask her about the MacBook Pro laptop. It’s a brilliant piece of technology and today I am just pricing it. Whew! Think I’ll wait a bit to make a purchase! I came in today for a class on my iPhone X. I got the time wrong and it doesn’t start until 2pm. That means I’ve got two hours to kill. I walk back to my car and read for an hour and the glare of the sun gives me a headache. I fumble my way back to the elevator and head to California Pizza Kitchen for a salad and to get some relief from the extra bright day. Boring! Finally it’s 10 till 2 and I make my way back to Apple. I’m cranky and tired…Thinking of just going home, but after waiting this long I may as well take the class. Well, the class was great! The instructor was a young man I recognized from a Pages class I took about a year ago. J.F. is his name and when I sat at the desk for the class he recognized me and greeted me with enthusiasm. He stated he was delighted to see me again. He even remembered my name. He was helpful and I learned a great deal of new features on my phone and iPad. He took his time and I had fun! I was the only person in the class.
The thing is…I left the Apple Store feeling great about myself and my ability to relate to the young man who helped me. I realized that it is more often than not these days that I deal with people who are impatient with my age. They have expectations that I am too old to understand. We all can tell if we really relate to the “other” and if we are enjoying our time together. We are interested in what the other has to say. J.F. and I had a very good class and we enjoyed our time together. What a lovely turn to my day.
As I left Apple and headed for the elevator I was behind a group of young men who were in conversation. Three of them headed into their office in the building and one walked next to me to the elevator. All of a sudden this lovely young man lept into the air, with a big smile on his face and “whooped”! I smiled at him and as we got on the elevator he leaned his head toward me and sang “I just got the job”… I congratulated him and we both smiled as the doors opened and he went his way and I went mine, marveling at my visibility.