Last night, she cooked the largest large BBQ-sauce topped hamburger, a sticky burger with everything, she’d ever prepared.

Why?

Because she never concerned herself if anybody listened or anybody cared.

She worked for a living, taking customers’ orders, served drinks, cooked the food, carried food to the table and accepted cash before the customers left.

She couldn’t tell you that Charles Schulz retired from the life of a daily cartoonist with an announcement in the comics section of newspapers on Sunday, the 13th of February, 2000.

She didn’t know the president of Germany had resigned after losing complete immunity from the law.

She knew many of her customers by name, their favourite menu items, their job status in town, how her football team was doing and why the ice cream machine was broken.

She believed but didn’t preach to others that many pairs of hands folded in prayer reach out to touch the whole earth.

There’s always that better life somewhere if…

Lucy had just given real, helpful psychiatric advice to Charlie Brown; Snoopy had shot down the Red Baron; Schroeder went on to become a famous philosopher and concert pianist; Linus came to terms with a security blanket; Sally and Pigpen fell in love, marrying and producing the next Peanuts generation.

Dilbert: If we know it’s doomed, why do we bother?

Boss: It’s the same reason I had kids.

Dilbert: [thinking] At least there’s a reason.

She filled up a takeaway cup with Dr. Pepper and handed it to the customer walking out the door.

“I’ll see y’all soon, okay?”

The customer nodded. After 35 years of eating Bubba’s good homestyle burgers, there ain’t no question of coming back…right after the weekly paycheck clears and maybe after the bills are paid.

Naw, the bills can wait!

Quality of life — hamburgers, fried pork chops, grilled liver and onions — food pyramids around here are simple triangles, happiness more important than life expectancy or international news headlines.

In any language, it’s still the same sentiment: let the good times roll.