We live in a hostile and often cruel world. I’ve made it part of my mission in life to use my blog for good and to look for the bright spots, the color, and the light. It’s selfish; I need it as much or more than anyone. There is a lot of good stuff all around me.  I don’t need to go anywhere.

Nobody needs me to catalog the ugly and nasty news of the world; plenty of better-qualified people are doing that. This story is about one of the bright spots. I reject negativity in my life and my work.

Nothing gives Maria and me more joy than seeing bright and hard-working kids take some leaps, summon their courage, and take some risks. And then succeed.

Ashley and Gordon are two young people like that, and it seems they hit the jackpot when most people cluck and whine, shake their heads, blame other people for their troubles, and say it can’t be done.

It can be done if you have enough heart and work hard enough. Some people still do. They are holy to me. Ashley and Gordon just did it, a small miracle in a cynical world.

They rented space on a Greenwich, N.Y., main street – the site of one failed coffee cafe after another for as long as I can remember – and started researching, planning, and plotting how to make a bakery, coffee, and sandwich shop in a challenging environment.

They studied other food places, did some homework, and came up with many new ideas – low rent, tiny staff, limited but excellent menu, and delicious food. They learned a lot from the mistakes of their elders.

We checked in with them this morning, and the line was nearly out the door.

Most of their baked food were sold out. I could see they didn’t have time to pose for a picture, so I just came to them while they were working, and they and their new and only staffer – Zena – all pulled together spontanously and posed for me.

What a pleasure to see what these kids have accomplished with little money or experience and against very long odds.

The idea is not to hide from the bad stuff – it is all around us – but to look for and remember the good.

That is all around us as well. The young have the ability to be happy because they can still see beauty and hope. And they are not afraid of change.

 

A couple of years ago, Ashley and Gordon – two refugees from the Pandemic came home to ride it out. I remember hiring  Gordon to play his guitar for some of the refugee kids who came here for lunch.  He was doing handy work.

He was a kind and good-hearted soul; the kids loved him. Ashley worked as a waitress at the Round House Cafe before it folded. She worked hard and paid attention. I didn’t see much of them after that, I wasn’t sure what they were doing.

They live in a camper on a farm. While she was gone, Ashley started baking. Gordon is a musician and her partner, and he also got interested in baking. The two of them took Ashley’s baked goods – bagels, cookies, croissants – to our town’s small farmer’s market, and people loved the food; they sold out weekly.

I’m a diabetic and can’t eat most of what they make at Coffe At.., but I ordered a breakfast sandwich – a freshly baked bagel with veggie cream cheese –  and I nibbled on a cookie. Both were great. Maria loved what she was eating.

It’s a small place, but the tables inside and out were full of happy, busy, chatting people.

Coffee At…was packed and stayed full this morning. The word is, it often is, especially on weekends. There are a lot of thoughtful touches inside – including a tiny rocking chair in the window to let people know that small children are welcome.

A lot of them were there. Ashley says she plans to expand the menu shortly.

Ashley grew up on a farm, and farm kids know how to work hard and be innovative. There is a lot to learn from them.

They had no choice but to learn. Brick-and-mortar restaurants are folding all over the place, and so are coffee shops. She and Gordon, and now Zena, work beautifully together. It appears seamless; I’m sure it isn’t.

They are happy and love what they are doing – that is apparent. Coffee At… is successful.

Such a thing lifts my heart, and I love taking pictures of the people who do it. There are more than you think, even in our small rural county.

Much of our world whines, complains, and surrenders to the soulless corporate behemoth. Those who don’t – especially those who are young and don’t – are blessed.

Ashley and Gordon just went out and made it work.

They dared to choose another, better path for them. Congratulations to both of them and thanks for lifting and inspiring the rest of us.

They are the future and the hope.

I rejoice at that.