Where My History Begins: Last Day at the Office 9/28/11

Taking full advantage of a deliciously comfortable king size bed and a cold room, I was cocooned under the fluffy white duvet with the best pillows ever cradling my head. Clean white sheets, soft against my warm skin. Bliss!

Then the blasted phone rings. It's the front desk at 12:30PM asking if I was checking out. After a few choice words ran through my sleep logged brain, I told him that I informed the front desk at 3:00AM that I would be checking out late. "When, madam?" I'm thinking when I'm darned well good and ready. By 2:30!

I dragged myself out of the bed (with much regret because it was the most comfortable bed that I've ever slept in) and started getting ready for the last day at the office with the teams. I had too much to squeeze into a much compressed schedule. So like the proverbial chicken, I'm showering, changing, packing, repacking, wondering how my backpack was 3 times heavier than when I arrived. Shoving more stuff into the suitcase and praying that it wasn't overweight.

A coworker calls to say that there are some cool shops by the ATM. Great, I need to find some postcards and maybe a t-shirt or two for the nephews because incredibly carved elephants just aren't enough. I'm such a teriffic aunt, if I do say so myself. But I digress. Have to move the suitcase and bags to another room that we're keeping an extra day. This way when we get back from the office we can eat dinner, change, freshen up and leave for the airport at 1:00AM. Oh happy joy joy!

The driver picks us up at 4:00 and we get to the office by 4:30. This is crazy, I have to meet with everyone. I have too much to do. Dipesh and I have barely cracked the surface of refining the collection processes, but I've tossed something out there for him to think about and he has. Go Debbie! Improving processes one step at a time. Needed to have this conversation with him all week but the other processes captured his time. I feel like throwing a temper tantrum because I need to talk about the processes with him. Needless to say, my processes got hosed in the time department.

The teams get there at 5:30, I have to upload some recons. Blankety blank slow blank connection! Have to go sit with the teams. For the entire week, I have felt like the rope in a tug of war game. I have to sit with PI, then I'm pulled to sit with Recons then I'm yanked to sit with collections...oh goodness it's not enough time!!! and it's ticking FAST!

I'm like a jack in the box, bouncing from person to person. Finally, I get some much needed time with Dipesh. He's run numbers, made a pretty chart and we start to talk about what we think this can bring to the table for the team. I want to test with a couple people. Would love to be there when it's implemented. Hey boss, I want to come back for at least 3 weeks!

Somehow we drift into a personal conversation about cars and motorcycles and history and culture. We really could go on for hours, but I'm getting ready to leave. Here comes some folks to usher me into a conference room. Um, ok. I've already met the teams a week ago.

If I had only known or been prepared for this...anyone who really knows me knows that despite of the "I'm tough, no one can hurt me, whatever, it ain't nothing but a thing" persona that I generally show to the world, I truly wear my heart on my sleeve. I'm easily touched and really can be very emotional.

So the teams gather to present us with gifts. Yep gifts! I'm standing there looking at all these smiling faces being handed a package wrapped in hot pink paper and...a hard swallow past the lump in my throat. I can't do this. I turn around and will the tears not to fall. I am so completely overwhelmed by their generosity and spirit. My boss, all calm and cool, gives her speech and I can barely get two words out. A beautiful purse and bracelet in a turquoise blue to match the churidar kameez that I had worn on Monday. My heart crumbles. I just want to hug them all.

But wait there's more...that's just one of the 4 teams I have. Here comes the other two in a joint effort to push me over the emotional cliff. But hey, I know what's coming and I've got this. Right. I open my mouth and nothing. I cannot get anything past the lump that is now twice the size it was. So completely choked up, tears welling in my eyes. The only thing I'm thinking is please, Lord, don't let the tears run down my face. This is so embarassing. Dipesh is standing to my left but I can't even look at him. Avinash is standing to my right watching intently. I really want to find an empty room, put my head down and cry.

I really was humbled to be there with them. Always a kind word and a smile for me. They are generous of spirit and heart. I can't tell you what that kind of outpouring does to me. I really was emotionally crushed by all of it. As the visiting client, I know it wasn't a good business practice, but before I'm a supervisor, I am a human...and on this day, this human was emotionally undone.

We have a quick moment to snap pictures because it's so dang important that we leave on time. Whatever! I don't want to go back. I still have too much to do here. I was asked if I could stay and I wished I could. It really was the beginning of something good happening, I could feel it.

Then chaos, it's time. I'm shaking hands with everyone when all I really want to do is hug, but that probably isn't appropriate...but sometimes you have to say appropriate be damned. I threw a few hugs out there. Take that business etiquette! If I can cry, I can hug.

I have three amazing teams and cannot wait to see them again! Missed getting a photo of one, but the manager for that team is working on it for me!