Describe a recent moment of happiness in your life.

    Every Saturday morning, I walk into the doors of Industrial Donut immediately greeted by my boss and co-workers. In the midst of my stress and tiredness, it is nice to be welcomed every week with smiling eyes. Recently, I have been looking forward to working every week and enjoying my job because I get to help the community. My boss calls me the "ace of all trades" because I do so many tasks at once. Out of the many tasks, there are none that I particularly dislike, but I am the happiest when I get to dip and decorate donuts.

    When I first started working there, I was immediately thrown into the cashier position. Taking orders, making drinks, recommending the special of the week. I had fun doing it because I got to interact with people and be up in all of the action, but it was also extremely stressful. I started this job at the height of the pandemic and we did not have a glass shield to protect me if there were people not wearing masks so I had to be careful not to be too close. To a normal person, this would be okay, but I have mild hearing loss and with the masks and distancing, it was five times harder. Every morning I would come to work, I would be stressed out because I was having a hard time, but didn't want to be a hindrance to my boss. I told my bosses about my hearing and was sent to the back of the store because I could not hear customers over the phone. For over half a year, I would come and hand wash the dirty dishes for four hours. The water was hot and my hands would become wrinkly. Yet I was efficient and thorough which made everyone else's jobs a lot easier. I was disappointed because there was something that I had always wanted to do but did not have the courage to ask.

    Just this past month, I told my boss that I wanted to dip donuts and found out we had a misunderstanding because he thought I did not want to be in the front at all because of my hearing. I continue to wash dishes and make icings, but every once in a while, I am called out to the front to dip donuts. I step through the swinging gray door and take in all of the senses: the bell-ringing as people walked in the door, the sizzling of the donut friers, and the smell of fresh donuts and hot icing. I pull on my plastic gloves and get to work. Something as simple as dipping donuts into icings and toppings made my shift so much more enjoyable and exciting. 

    If I got the privilege of dipping donuts from the start, I don't think it would make me as happy as it does today. Part of the reason is that I earned it by persevering on tasks that are not as fun and going out of my comfort zone to ask my boss for that opportunity. When I started dipping donuts more regularly, I felt happy that my boss trusts me to do such an important job after seeing me work hard behind the scenes. It's also nice because don't have time to sit in my negative thoughts because of how fast-paced it is. However, the part of this job that makes me the happiest is seeing a child's face of awe while watching me make their donut. Whether I am making special birthday orders or oreo donuts for that family's morning out, knowing that my donuts are making other people happy is the best reward.

Here are some donuts I made :)