It's a bit cold in this part of the country today. I did combat the cold by filling the hearth on the fireplace with some wood and putting a match to it. I have an extra hot cup of Door County Lighthouse Blend Coffee sitting next to me and a warm Springer Spaniel sitting on my feet. I am in great shape now.
Sixty one years of life on this Earth taught me a few things and most of you who know me would say that I could have learned a lot more. In those sixty one years I have had a few jobs which included mowing lawns, shoveling snow, painting garages, working in a drug store, repairing cars, pumping gas, delivering salt, making sure toilets flushed, hot water came out on the left side, cold water stayed to the right, hospitals and clinics were built to specifications and were able to run 24/7. I learned a long time ago the main rule of service work.
Luke 6:31 New American Standard Bible (NASB)
Each of those jobs presented it's own difficulties and challenges. Lawn mowers wouldn't always start like they should have, sometimes the snow was more than a twelve year old bargained for, drug deliveries became sketchy, truck tires blew up now and then, salt bags went from 80 to 100 pounds, water lines were located outside in a ditch and the repairs were sometimes in below zero temperatures, hospitals do run 24/7 and sometimes you need to be there 24/7.
Despite the difficulties, I never missed being paid. I have always received pay worthy of my labor. But what kept me going to work even under difficult situations were the people I have worked with. Yes, there are those "crank heads" that at times I wouldn't miss at all, but it is those difficult people that have helped to mold my character and taught me patience. But the true fact is this. In my 50 some years of working for and with people I have encountered blessing upon blessing and have always walked away cherishing some of the people I worked with. It's the people experience that make the challenges easier to deal with and by embracing that ideal I have found that I really am not a "clock watcher" who counts the minutes down until I am released from my duties and then can run home. Yes I love my private life, but I have never hated a job which made me become a clock watcher.
Yesterday was a perfect example. I had a young vendor who got off on the wrong foot with me as well as my "one up." This fella pushed all of my buttons in the wrong way for two days. My boss who is always "Mister Positive" was having a hard time dealing with this guy also. I finally agreed to go out of my way to see if I could accommodate the needs of our contracted vendor, and make his life a little easier. He was of course late for our appointment but I still had my "Mr. Approachable" hat on so I waited and we solved his issue. During our one hour meeting I found out that his management was not allowing him to go home until his task was done and he hadn't seen his wife and two week old baby in five days. The guy just wanted to go home. He apologized for being over persistent. I basically apologized for being old and that seemed to make my new Millennial friend happy. I sent him away, task accomplished, and with a cup of coffee in his hand for the road.
I felt better and he learned a few things about healthcare that he didn't understand. We both left, feeling confident about our next encounter which will be sometime later this summer.
Friends, I do need a pay check and that is a reward for giving my time to a good employers for many years. However it is the people experience that makes me go to work. God knows who we will meet each day, and our encounters are His way of teaching and bringing out the best in us. When I look at each job I have held, I can recall people that I would work with again or for, anytime! I can hear one of the blessings in the kitchen right now. I married one of my co-workers a thousand years ago. God had that one planned also.
Marty
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