Ending

On Friday at around 4:15 my assistant quietly came into my office. My bosses had said goodbye and left, and I had no more papers on my normally cluttered and stacked up desk, no more files to review, no more emails to answer. At 3:30 I had called my indispensable outside legal counsel for the last time, to tell him what cases I had left in the hands of my colleagues, and the consultant who will cover for me for a while. I had thrown out my chewed up Bic Clicks and put my well worn and much feared green editing pencil in my briefcase. I was looking at the weather for the weekend on the web. "You know," she said "you could leave early today. It's your last day." I hemmed but said okay, I could tell the staff were eager to see me go so they could leave, too. I looked over the desk one last time, shut down my computer, put on my coat and hat. I turned off the lights, and stood for a second, looking at the dark, empty room where I had worked for five and a half years. I went out and said goodbye, a few people hugged me, most shook my hand. I took my ID card and my code card off my lanyard and gave them to my assistant.

I took the elevator downstairs and stopped by security to give them my parking pass. As I went out to the car, a hearse was arriving, hurrying to pick up a deceased resident before Shabbos. I had worked there for exactly five and a half years to the day, in a nursing home building where 200 very old, very sick people die a year, and I had never seen the hearse before. A solemn young man in a black overcoat hopped out with the special brown folder that I know is used only to pick up death certificates. As I drove away for the last time, I saw the hearse backing up to the unmarked back door that leads to the morgue.

Tomorrow I will take the 7:25 train downtown and start a new adventure. Ground Rule #2 remains in effect, but I'll let you know how it goes.

Comments

[E]

A poignant ending--and an exciting new beginning!