Retirement Day

A colleague of mine, Tom, is retiring today after nearly 37 years. Oddly, he's not as cynical as I am. And I've only been working for 10 years in a similar role.

Yesterday he invited me over to his desk. He showed me an old seating chart from his early days and a 11-year-old paper on our technology platform. He gave me the paper, knowing I'd enjoy looking through it.

He also had a "Reporter" law book with his name and years of service on it. 1972 - 2009. It was blank inside so colleagues could write their wishes. My prose is on page 20 (or so).

What amazed me most about Tom is his dedication. He was rarely sick and always early to meetings. And his dedication was evident when we talked yesterday. There on his screen was some software enhancements he was trying to get in before today. Most likely some needless change by management, but important to Tom that he finish. I respect that.

Will I too be as dedicated during my last few months, weeks, days before retirement? Not sure. Knowing me though, I'll probably worry about getting fired and thus stick it out until the last hour.

How about you?