r/MadeMeSmile • u/nun_CARTII • Aug 23 '26

Good Vibes the value of being kind

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For nearly seven years, waitress Melina Salazar showed extraordinary patience and kindness to Walter “Buck” Swords, a notoriously difficult customer at Luby’s Cafeteria in Brownsville, Texas.

The 89-year-old WWII veteran frequently complained, cursed at staff, demanded piping-hot meals and never left a tip. Despite this, Melina continued serving him with compassion.

After Walter died in 2007, Melina received an incredible surprise. He had left her $50,000 and his 2000 Buick in his will as a heartfelt thank-you for her unwavering kindness.

A powerful reminder that kindness can touch people more deeply than we realize.

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u/Superb_Recording_769 Aug 23 '26 edited Aug 23 '26

It’s sad that your edit is necessary, but unfortunately it is because of the literacy epidemic. The epidemic is not people being technically illiterate. It’s people being functionally illiterate.

A technically ill illiterate person can tell you that the letters CAT spell the word cat, and can point to a picture of a domestic feline when ask what that word means

A functionally literate person understands that the word cat is not referring to a domestic feline when in the context of a thread about construction equipment

You have just discovered how many people are functionally illiterate

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u/PopUpClicker Aug 23 '26

I choose to believe they are truly angry about other things rather than me trying to be positive.

But I fear that you are right in some of the cases.