2/28/2007

Goodbye Bruce

This is Jory here (Elissa’s husband) and I just wanted to share some thoughts. My best friend where I work just decided to move on to other things. His name is Bruce, and we worked closely together in the AutoCAD department. He taught me most of what I know about AutoCAD, and was truly a joy to be around. He's an older fellow, but quick with a joke and able to talk to anybody about anything. We got along great together, and he will truly be missed.

I feel very sad about this ... he was one very bright spot about going to work every day. Even though we were both put in a back room, isolated from much of what goes on in the office, with no windows or much communication with the outside world ... he made work fun. We had many (many, many, many) conversations (he really liked to talk) about everything from shrimps to movies to economics to biblical prophecy. He was somebody to commiserate with when things weren't going well, or when we got a big load of work dumped on our shoulders. I knew I could count on Bruce to share a joke or shed some perspective on a problem, or just be somebody to listen to my ramblings.

I can imagine how he must feel … it must be like the last day of school before summer vacation. We always agreed that it’s much better for somebody to move on with their own decision rather than be let go unexpectedly. I don’t know what his plans are, but he must have that “new beginning” feeling. I, on the other hand, feel quite left behind.

It almost feels like a funeral is going on. I'm very melancholy, and have a tight feeling in my middle. I know that in all likelihood, I will probably never see him again, at least until heaven, and I don't know how everything will work out around here at work. It's so weird, because I never really got to know many of the other folks around here very well. It was just go to work, do my duty, and head home. But now I've made a few friends, and they are leaving. Phil, another guy I worked closely with, left about six months ago, and my favorite secretary Tina was let go. New people are coming in, and it’s difficult for me to get to know them well, or try to explain how and why we do things around here.

I still do not know how to handle friendships that move on … what’s supposed to happen when good friends aren’t able to spend time together anymore, when you’re not interacting from day-to-day. It was this way with high school and college friends as well. I think of them often, and wonder how they are doing, but there’s no longer that close relationship forged from spending time and doing things together. Sigh.

I guess this just brings to light the fact that things change, over time, sometimes fast and sometimes slow, and that I have no control over most of it. If nothing else, it serves to remind me not to take things for granted, and to enjoy every minute of everything that I’m going through, good or bad, because it won’t last forever. I think I’m going to hop on the Harley and go for a ride, and then head home to give everybody a big hug.

Thanks for listening.
Jory

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Friends are forever, my friend. Fear not. If you fail to keep up with them (shame on you), God does. I run into friends I've been out of contact with for 40 years and nothing is different. They're still Jimmy, Larry and Tommy. Stay in touch with ALL of them. Email is free. Use it. Some are prohibitively far away (well, not really, depending on how good a friend it is) but ALL are there. ALL will be HAPPY to hear from you. You can party any time with Bruce and Tina. You can visit everybody else when you're in NM. Your lovely young wife will love it. It is an insight into your past that she missed out on. Not to mention your kids....fbtap

Unknown said...

Hey, you're supposed to tell me when you hijack my blog! We love you bruce!

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