I Found A Secret Drawer In A Cafe.

And what I discovered was one of the best moments in my life.

Sometimes life throws a loving surprise at you that you never forget. My spicy 85-year-old mother in law and I recently went to our favorite cafe. It’s a funky little spot with a fireplace, mismatched tables, chairs, and sofas. It’s a comforting place and perfect for conversation over a cup of chai.

My mother in law has had a rough few years. Her husband died unexpectedly and we all adored him. She uprooted herself from her home and moved thousands of miles to be closer to the majority of her kids and grandchildren. It hasn’t been easy for her. And to top it all off — she was on the waiting list for hip replacement surgery and has been bravely bearing the wincing pain.

The table we sat at while we sipped our chai was a strange little thing. It felt and looked like a coffee end table vs a table to eat at. But it was close to the window and we could see the clouds and birds soar by.

My mother-in-law is a delight. She’s super smart, funny, sexy, and she has an insatiable curiosity about life. She looked down at the underside of the table and then started prying at her end.

She gasped and said, “Kim — there’s a hidden drawer here. I’ve never noticed it before.” She opened it up and her eyes went wide. She reached in and pulled out a bunch of handwritten notes.

“This drawer is full of positive notes!”

I quickly looked on my side of the table and I had a hidden drawer too. I pulled it open and mine was also stuffed with scraps of paper, backs of grocery lists, envelopes, receipts, bookmarks, and bills. You could tell once someone discovered the drawer — they wanted to add to it and had scrounged through their belongings to find a scrap of paper.

What did these notes all have in common? Four things. People had discovered the drawers as we did and they decided to leave a note of happiness for others to read. Every single note had an inspirational message of hope for the reader. And no one signed their name.

People wrote about not giving up; how to keep smiling when life has thrown you a curveball; to choose kindness over anger; why we shouldn’t overlook the ordinary beauty of life; to love your family even if you have differences; to read every day so you grow your rich, inner life; to forgive yourself and others and not to focus on only making money. Not one note had a swear word or an unkind comment.

There were drawings from children and others with shaky, old-fashioned writing.

Hastily scribbled quotes, poetry, book recommendations and advice from grandmothers floated into our heads. Someone had put on lipstick and kissed the page and wrote beside it — You are loved more than you know.

It was mind-blowing.

It was unbelievable. We sat in a tiny cafe at a table that held a hundred tiny notes from people we didn’t know. We started reading them out to each other and our chai went cold. Honestly, it brought us to tears so quickly.

These notes were from people who had also discovered the little drawers. And they left something of themselves behind.

Tears rolled down my mother in law’s face and she said,

“I can feel all the love pouring out of this drawer! I feel like I’ve been filled with love.”

She was right. We read every single note in both drawers. We had to ask to get our chai reheated. And we also dove into our purses and scrounged for some paper and pens. I wrote a note on the back of a grocery list and my mother-in-law wrote on the back of a receipt. We simply wrote what was in our hearts.

Then we smiled at each other and put them into both drawers for someone else to discover.

We walked out of the cafe feeling lighter and embraced by the world. All because an odd little table encouraged us in a small, touching, and profound way — to receive and share the love.