It’s Christmas Eve, and I’m working in a cafe in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

I order a hot cocoa, and after a few minutes, the barista–who is working alone–brings it to my table, very carefully sets it down, and rotates it so the heart shape is facing just the right direction. There it is to the right.

The entire time he is doing this, I am slightly smiling, and when he’s finished setting it down, he looks up at me with a smile, too.

I think a non-HSP wouldn’t think much of this. Latte art like this heart isn’t anything special, really. But the care with which he set it down touched me in a very small way. He put the effort into making this little heart. Again, it doesn’t mean anything–it’s just the fact that someone put effort into doing something unnecessary, something they didn’t have to do, something with a hint of whimsy and playfulness.

I appreciate the hell out of stuff like this.

Any time someone has given me an unexpected gift, or done something thoughtful for me, it touches me greatly. I am blown away that someone would care about me enough to take the time, effort, and expense to do something just for me. Like the time my grandma bought me a doll when I was a very little girl (and how I was torn apart when I lost it.)

I pay great attention to details and when people do things they didn’t have to do. Maybe this is one of those things that’s actually a benefit of being a HSP. 🙂