A New Hope
Leia: We have no time for our sorrows, Commander.
Obi-Wan Kenobi: They [the droids] must be delivered safely or other star systems will suffer the same fate as Alderaan. Your destiny lies along a different path than mine.
Today was my last day at my old company. I am now officially among the unemployed. This was not one of those quickie, by-the-way-today’s-your-last-day kind of lay-offs. Our department had a good 18 months’ notice to prepare for the inevitable. I began preparing myself right away to go back to school for my graduate degree.
To speak the truth, I’d been chafing at the routine of my job for awhile. I loved my job. I don’t believe there ever be another job where someone could have as much fun for as long as I did, between writing stories and taking photographs. But when you see America falling to pieces, when I read every day the new outrages the Progressives were committing against our freedom, when I was going to lose my own job precisely because the outrageous taxing and spending and entitlement programs were driving my company out of the state, I felt almost guilty having so much fun. I wanted to be part of the fight.
Oh, that we could have all stayed there for the rest of careers. Our business center has the most beautiful pond. Leaving in the Spring was heart-breaking. God is good, though, and in His mercy, he brought Spring on a full three weeks before it was due. We couldn’t believe our good luck. My worries from last Fall that I would not get to see the trees bloom around Mazda Pond were unfounded; I spent every lunchtime last week saying good-bye to my favorite trees and views of the pond, its bridges, its pathway, its birds and little critters.
The weather turned cold again this week. Like Princess Leia, I had no more time for saying goodbye to nature; it was time to pack up and move on out, which I did in orderly fashion. We said good-bye to all the people we know (six of us were “impacted”) that we’ve worked with during the week and this morning we bid farewell to our supervisor and the other remaining supervisor and to one another.
If we were leaving the full office building we once knew, filled with laughter and phone conversations, and copy machines running, we might have been sadder. But the building is 4/5ths empty. Practically everyone is already gone, either retired, transferred, or “impacted”. All you hear now are crickets chirping.
It was just our office’s time. That is the way of business. Some businesses last longer than others, but eventually they fade away. Our first emotional investment should be in our families, then our neighbors and community friends. People come and go so quickly in the business world. Not that you shouldn’t make friends; just that you should be aware that you or they or all of you may find yourselves pushed out of the beehive someday.
Still, all the memories I left behind as I waved one last good-bye to J.D. and left the parking lot for the last time are all good. We’re all on Facebook of course, and the ladies of our department all live near one another, so that they’re neighbors as well as former co-workers and, of course, friends.
The last time I walked the halls, the echoes of all those good times rang in the empty spaces. They won’t be empty for long; a new tenant is already measuring up for space in the building, and good times and busy-ness will fill it up again. Hearing the silence was sad and frankly I was glad the end had finally come. Watching an office close up, I suspect, is somewhat akin to a friend or family member having a terminal illness; even though you were sad, you’re relieved when their suffering is finally over.
So it’s farewell to the good times of my former company. Thank you for 13 wonderful years!
And now, it’s hello to my adversaries, to the enemies of freedom and liberty. Now that I’m free, you Progressives and Liberals, I have all the time in the world to help thwart your plans. Watch out, because I’m on my blog, Facebook, Twitter, and on your case, full-time.
Obi-Wan Kenobi: They [the droids] must be delivered safely or other star systems will suffer the same fate as Alderaan. Your destiny lies along a different path than mine.
Today was my last day at my old company. I am now officially among the unemployed. This was not one of those quickie, by-the-way-today’s-your-last-day kind of lay-offs. Our department had a good 18 months’ notice to prepare for the inevitable. I began preparing myself right away to go back to school for my graduate degree.
To speak the truth, I’d been chafing at the routine of my job for awhile. I loved my job. I don’t believe there ever be another job where someone could have as much fun for as long as I did, between writing stories and taking photographs. But when you see America falling to pieces, when I read every day the new outrages the Progressives were committing against our freedom, when I was going to lose my own job precisely because the outrageous taxing and spending and entitlement programs were driving my company out of the state, I felt almost guilty having so much fun. I wanted to be part of the fight.
Oh, that we could have all stayed there for the rest of careers. Our business center has the most beautiful pond. Leaving in the Spring was heart-breaking. God is good, though, and in His mercy, he brought Spring on a full three weeks before it was due. We couldn’t believe our good luck. My worries from last Fall that I would not get to see the trees bloom around Mazda Pond were unfounded; I spent every lunchtime last week saying good-bye to my favorite trees and views of the pond, its bridges, its pathway, its birds and little critters.
The weather turned cold again this week. Like Princess Leia, I had no more time for saying goodbye to nature; it was time to pack up and move on out, which I did in orderly fashion. We said good-bye to all the people we know (six of us were “impacted”) that we’ve worked with during the week and this morning we bid farewell to our supervisor and the other remaining supervisor and to one another.
If we were leaving the full office building we once knew, filled with laughter and phone conversations, and copy machines running, we might have been sadder. But the building is 4/5ths empty. Practically everyone is already gone, either retired, transferred, or “impacted”. All you hear now are crickets chirping.
It was just our office’s time. That is the way of business. Some businesses last longer than others, but eventually they fade away. Our first emotional investment should be in our families, then our neighbors and community friends. People come and go so quickly in the business world. Not that you shouldn’t make friends; just that you should be aware that you or they or all of you may find yourselves pushed out of the beehive someday.
Still, all the memories I left behind as I waved one last good-bye to J.D. and left the parking lot for the last time are all good. We’re all on Facebook of course, and the ladies of our department all live near one another, so that they’re neighbors as well as former co-workers and, of course, friends.
The last time I walked the halls, the echoes of all those good times rang in the empty spaces. They won’t be empty for long; a new tenant is already measuring up for space in the building, and good times and busy-ness will fill it up again. Hearing the silence was sad and frankly I was glad the end had finally come. Watching an office close up, I suspect, is somewhat akin to a friend or family member having a terminal illness; even though you were sad, you’re relieved when their suffering is finally over.
So it’s farewell to the good times of my former company. Thank you for 13 wonderful years!
And now, it’s hello to my adversaries, to the enemies of freedom and liberty. Now that I’m free, you Progressives and Liberals, I have all the time in the world to help thwart your plans. Watch out, because I’m on my blog, Facebook, Twitter, and on your case, full-time.
posted by Belle | 11:29 AM
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