The Noble Courtesy Flush

There are acts of heroism

that history will never record.

The soldier who runs back.

The stranger who stays.

The person in the office bathroom

who performs the courtesy flush

at precisely the right moment.

You did not ask for recognition.

You did not do it for the glory.

You did it

because you understood

that we are all in this together,

on this small blue planet,

sharing walls and ductwork

and the thin membrane of silence

that makes coworkers possible.

On behalf of everyone

who was on the other side of that door:

thank you.

You are the MVP.

You are the reason

we still believe in people.