Finals Week

This week is trying me. So much of me is still processing through the last year. The more I go back and revisit episodes at my old job, the more negative memories come up for me. Day to day I remember the fun times and how much I enjoyed my morning duties, my coworkers, and snapshots of laughter. But there are times when I remember faces and voices that are harsh, hopeless, angry, manipulative, and better left forgotten. Often these were the faces of friends turned self-promoters and politics-players or passive workers who didn't care how they effected others, the occasional manager who would rebuff concerns. Above all I can see one face, stubborn and angry, sullen and withdrawn. That face I could not help, could not guide.


Trying to let all this go and remember that I don't ever have to see those people again. That is not my life anymore, and they prepared me for a lifetime of crazy. Today for the first time in ages I entered into conflict with grace and subverted what could have been a thorny situation into one where everyone felt heard, respected, and ultimately created an environment of compromise and progress. Victory tastes sweetest when no one loses. I learned that the hard way at my old job, and while I know that not every win will be so sweet I will cherish this one.