It’s so hard to believe that week one at the new workplace has almost drawn to a close. The time has flown while I met all sorts of new faces this week — people that I will spend everyday for the next several years with. It’s crazy when you think about it that way – eight hours a day, five days a week … for years! It’s like being born into a new family.
Everyday this week, I looked around the office and watched people to try to figure out who each character was. Who is the comedian, the pessimist, the gossipmongier, the ego-maniac, the office grump, and so on. The funny thing is, I can’t wait to make friends with ALL of them. I tend to love people for their quirks and what makes them truly special. I can remember my first day in my last job, over 15 years ago. The one man that was a complete ego-maniac and who loved to educate me in nothing short of a condescending way, became one of my closest friends, the one I would regularly go to lunch with and we could share our personal stories and support each other.
While I’m eager to get to know this new group, I find myself missing all of my “old” friends at my former stomping grounds — “Kahuna”, “Poobah” and my “Sister”. I also miss being called Snicey (a playful combination of snarky and nice) and being called “dude”. I miss the co-worker that when I first met him, I knew instantly we would be great friends.. and it felt like I had known him for years, In fact, I kept trying to place his name for months because I could have sworn I already knew him! I miss “M Street” (located in the Sexual Health section of the old floor, so I’ll let you do the guessing as to it’s name). While I’ll of course still visit these friends (happy hour is to commence at 5:30 tomorrow evening) I miss their ever-day presence. I carry them with me though.. and the crystal bowl that holds small cards filled with their goodbyes and well-wishes sits on my new desk to remind me constantly of their friendship and love. The most important thing anyone one of us can walk away with after years in a workplace.
While I wait for new friendships to reveal themselves, I do already have one very special friend – the incredible lady who created the opportunity which brought me to my new job. She’s amazingly smart, creative, fun, respectful, tenacious and just an all around beautiful human being. She doesn’t know it, but when I first saw her years ago, even before I first began working for her in 2013 in my previous position, I knew she was going to be a special part of my life (I have premonitions quite often) but I just had no idea what a huge catalyst for positive change and growth she would be. Any environment she helps cultivate, I want to be a part of it and I am just so thrilled to be in this new position working for her.
With all of these reflections on the blessings of friendship, I draw this day to a close. I can’t wait to share what characters reveal themselves, and can’t wait until later when they perhaps see this blog and recognize themselves in the stories.
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