The Cleaning Lady

During my
first year of high school, our teacher gave us a trivia quiz.
I was a conscientious student
and had breezed through the questions,
until I read
the last one:
"What is the
first name of
the woman
who cleans
the school?"

Surely this was some kind of joke.
I had seen the cleaning woman several times.
She was tall,
dark-haired
and in her 50s,
but how would
I know her name?

I handed in my paper,
leaving the last question blank. Before class ended, one student asked
if the last question would count
toward our quiz grade.
"Absolutely,"
said the teacher.
"In your careers
you will meet many people.
All are significant. They deserve
your attention
and care,
even if all you do
is
smile
and
say
'Hello'."
I've never
forgotten that lesson.
I also learned
her name
was
Daisy.