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I know I’m late to the party, but my husband and I just finished season 4 of The Bear. And listen—I get that it’s a divisive show, but I’m firmly in the “love it” camp. The latest season leaned hard into the melodrama, and that’s fine with me. Running a restaurant does seem stressful! Family dynamics can be hard! (Just please don’t put me on the Emmys red carpet—I will absolutely tell any reporter who asks me that no, The Bear is not a comedy.)
Aside from an urge to enroll in culinary school to learn how to make the tiny, perfect desserts Marcus cranks out, there’s one moment that really stuck with me.
In one episode, Richie mentions the restaurant’s “surprise budget.” On top of a flower budget, we learn the former Italian sandwich line cook—now maître d’—gets a little pile of cash each month to “surprise and delight” diners however he wants.
He uses it, in one memorable scene, to turn the restaurant’s alleyway into a snowy winter wonderland for out-of-towners who wanted to experience Chicago at the holidays instead of in the summer.
As a native Midwesterner, I question their judgment because Chicago is inhospitable from November through about March, but hey, I’m not in the writers’ room.
As a woman whose love languages is gifts and acts of service, though, it got me thinking:
Why don’t we all have a surprise budget?
It doesn’t need to be any major, wallet-busting amount. Even setting aside $50 purely to make someone else happy would give you a jolt of serotonin that would easily make up for one less Doordash’d meal a month.
The possibilities? Endless. Send your mom flowers. Pick up the tab on your co-workers’ coffee. Surprise your partner with the bougie body wash they love in the shower. Donate to a friend’s favorite charity in their name. Wipe out a teacher’s Amazon wish list.
We talk a lot about the “look good, feel good” connection, but what about the “do good, feel good” one?
Even small gestures are generous. And that’s a very good look.