Farewell or Good-bye…..I’m gone!

As the year winds down and folks leave for summer break, change gears for summer programs and summer projects, different schedules and routines, goodbye, farewell, see you in September fill the air around here. Some folks send notes or shout their farewell and goodbyes in the hallways and rooms. Goodbye for the summer, I’m gone, farewell, have a good summer, some sad and some other merry refrains. For some it is a change of location or seat or just moving on. It is a flurry of activity and mixed emotions as all of these actions and conversations takes place.

I am also at a crossroads, actually, I have been parked here for months now, only recently got the energy or the wisdom to rev up the engine and take flight. Say farewell, good-bye, so long, haste la vista, Auf Wiedersehen, arrivederci, adios, to a place and people I have worked with that I have enjoyed, grown to appreciate and indulge. An organization that I have supported, grown with and felt disillusioned about. But it is time for me to move on. Move on to other more fulfilling and satisfying roles and work in the larger community.

I have been ready to move on for some time now but thought that I would be patient during the various transitions. I was optimistic that the change would embrace quality, build on successes, strengthen what is good, solid, and measurable, and support the mission. I would be patient to see if the color of the light will change, back to green for go do what is good, effective, efficient and necessary to achieve the goals. However, for me, it is amber. Amber because it is a living, there are some opportunities for the work that I enjoy and appreciate and then the preponderance of the other stuff that detract and diminish my interest and value in the place. I am about quality, collaboration, teamwork, efficiency and successful outcomes. Not a measure or interpretation of success, but actual success as a measure of the stated goals and the results of the efforts and actions.

I am immensely proud of the work I have done, the partnerships I have established and the friendships that I have formed over the years. I believe that I have contributed to the fabric and essence of the team and the community of learners. I am also proud of the contributions I have made to the quality and content of the program not only in responding to the mandates but in developing and creating initiatives to meet the needs and improve the quality of life for the community. My many contributions and initiatives that are sustainable and support the mission and goals of the organization. I am truly grateful for the time and opportunity. Thanks to many for the opportunity.

So this is goodbye, farewell, adios from this place and daily contact and interaction with these good folks and time to say hello, hi, hola, bonjour, hallo, Auf Wiedersehen, ciao to a brave new world and new opportunities. I am hopeful, enthusiastic, learned, and creative; a breakthrough leader ready, willing and able to jump in with both feet knowing that I will land on my feet when I arrive, taking up the baton that will be the work and moving on to success and significance.

So, farewell, goodbye…I’m gone!

Have a wonderful summer everyone! See you in September!

Senior Moment -Blackberry Recall

Recently I got an alert on the BB of a situation that I needed to follow up. I responded and asked for a contact number to reach out. After the exchange I realized that I could have BB to the person directly from the get. As I realized it I sent back that I had a lapse of memory no need to respond. The retort I received was that I had a senior moment. So it was! Since then I’ve been thinking about the instance and the impetus that got me moving forward on this blog, even though I thought about doing one for some time.

My premiere blog asked about a Blackberry Etiquette, since BB is all the rave these days.
Using technology is a must and we will all use it as we see fit. The use may be orderly, deliberate, impulsive, erratic, polite or intense. Folks pull out their gadgets anytime and all the time to send, receive, check, double check and some just to play with it. In the workplace however or when we are otherwise engaged with another live, person I think we should display some courtesy and common sense. Not every buzz needs attention so why interrupt present company. I guess I will have to take the high road anytime I think that the use could have been delayed or handled more respectfully or professionally. I could take a deep breath; I could roll my eyes or empathize with the user as over zealous or pretentious. If it is not an emergency or some information is expected that needs an immediate response, then perhaps we can view that user as lacking professionalism and business savvy. Courtesy and respect are as transparent as cellophane tape.

My main concern for what I think is the over-use of the BB is its impact on our psyche. What may appear as the potential diminution of the appreciation and respect for human interaction because of our attention to a gadget? Granted it is another individual we are responding to via the gadget however they are not in front of the user. That ought to count for something. After all how important do you feel when you are being ignored or paused while the attention is given to the BB and that use is not relevant to your discussion or meeting. Can you always appreciate that? Why not do unto others……, or maybe not!

I am a social scientist whose interest is in preserving the human species more or less as we know it. Understanding that we are who we are and what make us grow and self actualize, you know persevere, is nurture and nature. I am not archaeological. My thing is not to learn how or why things have become extinct or how we have adapted to interact socially with gadgets at the expense of relating person to person, after the fact. My thing is looking at the things we do or fail to do that result in these losses in a time sensitive manner. This way we can make adjustments and fix the problem as we move forward. Yeah, social science, archaeology, they are part and parcel of each other but for me I want to look at the unique things and nature in us and preserve it while we are still present. This way we can persevere, apply our resilience and continue to be loving, caring people. As I said earlier, technology is new, its now and the wave of the future. Our creative genius continues to produce more and more gadgets that we consider progress and forward thinking. These gadgets as we are seeing, although positive, can lead to more isolation or anti social behavior, while we are together, - if you can imagine that. I am one of those geeks; I like the gadgets and I have a good grasp of most of them, they are great. Let’s keep the use in perspective.

So, as I reflect on my senior moment, time so fleeting, I will from here on in talk about the little things that are dear to me, the things, encounters, experiences, episodes that we all see, have and find endearing or interesting, to be the focus of our exchanges.

Remember to come back here often, comment always and stop and smell the flowers everyday!