Hello all. Those of you who know me, know that the last 3 weeks in my life have been most busy. In fact, to be honest, I have probably been busier than I have been in over 3 years, both personally and professionally. Now, I sit down to do a post and just have to rant about something that is bothering me. This is completely unrelated to automobiles and also unrelated to anything I usually blog about. Nevertheless, here goes.
Although this post is way, way, way off topic, I just have to talk about this. Something was said by a fellow co-worker this evening that just really struck me in a bad way. With the holidays coming, many are making plans and arrangements regarding how they will spend this meaningful time of the year. On the flip side, many will also be stuck working. Perhaps because our corporately controlled nation has become so greedy that closing down for two or three days per year just breaks their hearts. As everyone knows, I am a traditionalist who longs for the days when life was more simple. Weekends consisted of a Saturday and Sunday, work weeks consisted of Monday through Friday, and work days usually lasted from 0800-1700 on those days. Holidays were a time to spend with family and friends, giving thanks and celebrating. What happened to that? Today at work, a senior level manager made the comment to an employee asking about Thanksgiving scheduling that, "It's just another day, ma'am...just another day." I am not usually sentimental or easily moved by comments people make but when he said that, my heart just did a flip and I wanted to turn around and say something to the effect of, "What a shitty, unfeeling thing to say!" Maybe he doesn't care that he will be away from his family on Thanksgiving and Christmas but many of us, dare I say most, do care. This same manager, has a picture in his office of himself with some other managers at a company picnic several years back. A few weeks back, I happened to be in the office when another employee came in and was talking to me. He noticed that picture and made the comment, "Wow, I have never seen him smile before." He was referring to the same guy that made the comment today and he was serious. I kinda chuckled to see if he was kidding but he looked at me and clarified that he meant it and was impressed with the photo because the guy actually had a smile on. You see, to me, this is the type of person who is causing the problem with corporate America. There is no care or feeling left for anyone anymore. If we don't show people that we care about them and appreciate them, how is it fair that we expect them to be happy, productive employees? How unrealistic. Most animals will stop coming to you if you never give them love and praise, right? Could it be that we, as people, are the same? I think so. Perhaps I am too easy going and not as hardened as I should be but this is the way I see it. I don't care what day it is, it is never, "Just another day." Of course, the person who said this today will never know that it bothers me to the core but I will pray for him that he will one day see that every day is a day that God has given us and that special days like Thanksgiving and Christmas are days that we, as Americans, should set aside to thank God for all that he has given us and blessed us with. We need to consider those less fortunate than us and pray that they too will be blessed as we have. I think that corporate America is falling apart because of the lack of this and I have no doubt that it's going to get worse before it gets better. I only hope that someday, our children, and their children, can live and work in an environment that respects and welcomes the fact that there is more to life than your work. Perhaps then, America can return to being the great country that we grew up in. As for me, while I am proud of the company I work for, I am sickened that I work with someone who has this type of opinion and lack of respect for individuals' personal lives. What is our world turning into?
I would love to hear any opinions on this. Am I way off base here or what?
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2 comments:
Hi Daniel,
It is disapointing to hear negative comments like this and I think he pretty much summed up how he feels about his life in a nutshell. Whenever someone says something like that it is typically a 100% reflection of how they feel about themselves...so, based on that I am going to quote your blog:
"We need to consider those less fortunate than us and pray that they too will be blessed as we have."
He probably just doesn't have anything good going on outside of work, so it's hard for him to get how important this day is. And of course, a lot of businesses do stay open during the holidays but it certainly could have been presented in a much more feeling way.
Great post! I love it. I think you nailed it. It's sad to see how things are now compared to how they used to be! It's still a great place to live but it is changing. Thankfully our families have good old fashioned values and treasure time spent with loved ones!
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