The day that I arrived at work late(r than usual)
That person was a shoemaker near my office. At first I just wanted the old man gluing my outsole that was torn off. However, I ended up with new outsoles that cost almost as much as the shoes, after being advised (coaxed) by the shoe expert plus my own discretion over the repair’s long-term value.
It was around 7:45 a.m.
Me: Does it take a long time to do so?
Mr. Shoemaker: Not all at. Ten minutes I’d say.
Me: (Can’t believe my ears) Really?! In the next ten minutes, I can walk out peacefully from your shop? (He nodded*) How come it is this quick?
Mr. Shoemaker: Really. That’s the time we need the glue to be real fixed. So, ten minutes is quite long, actually.
Once I had made a decision, the shoemaker started doing his task proficiently. I observed him for a while before walking out from his stall to buy a coffee at a nearby stand which was situated around 30 meters away, with a spare pair of shoes he provided. I was convinced that lots of people were looking at me with amazement at my outfit style: a Mickey Mouse print T-shirt with hood + casual sport crop pants + Vans spicoli sunglasses + a striped canvas backpack + …blue Nanyang rubber thongs.
Returning with a coffee cup in my hand, I noticed that the old man finished gluing only one of my shoes. Despite the worry that I would be at work later than usual, I didn’t want to rush him, or he might do his job recklessly. I then started a conversation with him which was out of my unsocialized habit but luckily I’ve developed this new trait during my previous career. I’ve learnt that it’s been around 30 years that the shoemaker has been working here. He has learnt making shoes from a famous cordwainer. Today he can design, make or repair any kind of shoes. During the conversion, I took a glance at my watch thinking “It’s more than ten minutes now, Mr.” I anyway, decided to keep my mouth shut for fear that the saw in his hand would slice my shoe off. I listened to the shoemaker patiently without saying a word. He told me that he had so many customers, that many foreigner customers gave him a generous tip. “Please don’t expect a tip from me”, I thought to myself… He asked me where my office was and told me to come back to him if I was satisfied with the job he did. I told him that next time I would give him a 'challenging task' and see if he can repair them.
Once the shoemaker was assured that the glue was well fixed, he allowed me to check the shoes. I gave him the money, put another shoe on and walked out from the corner where he called “his shop”. I looked at my watch telling time '8:10 a.m.' then talked in my head “Ten minutes, you could have fooled me! -*-‘ ”
This morning I wasn’t worried with the time I have lost. I wasn’t even sure if the new outsoles that the shoemaker put for me would last long. The only thing I surely gained from this morning was a confidence. The confidence that the old man gave me every step that I took. 😊
Noted from 29 November 2013
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