I started a new job in April.  Still with the same company, but there is an entirely different vibe.  The job itself is intense.  So much so that the training lasted for 9 weeks, and we still didn’t cover everything.

During the eighth week of training, I and my 5 training team mates learned who would be our new manager.  Up to this point I had very mixed feelings.  Two of those managers had sat in on the training.  That said, I knew my new manager, before I knew he would be my new manager.

I wish I had a photo to post here.

It turns out that he is quite a character.  Yesterday he announced that he would be leaving the office at noon.  I was busy, but heard him say something about his son’s soccer practice.  I think.

This morning he did his typical walk through, stopping at everyone’s desk to ask how we are doing.  At the end of this daily practice he had something important to share.  He stood at the end of the cubicle trail and told a story that absolutely captured my attention.  I won’t be able to do it justice, but I’ll give it my best shot.

On Thursday afternoon he was standing at a food truck, waiting for the meal he had just ordered.  He was standing there alone for a short time until a man, whom he does not know begins to approach him.  The man had exited his vehicle, walked across a ‘ditch’, stopped in front of my manager and said, “I am going to faint”.  My manager, not knowing why he responded this way, said to the man, “just fall into my arms”.

This is exactly what happened.

The stranger passed out cold and was unconscious for “at least a minute”.  My manager said that he thought the man had possibly experienced a heat stroke, which would make perfect sense on a July afternoon in Florida.  Another man approached, and my manager appealed to him to call 911.  Shortly thereafter the unconscious man regained consciousness and did so with a scream.  He did not know where he was or what has happened.  When he finally composed himself he did not want rescue to come, nor did he want anyone to drive him home.  The man called his wife, who arrived within minutes, did not get out of her car, but instead simply followed her husband home.  Weird.  It took my manager 10 or 15 minutes to share this story, and he did it much more justice than I.  CLEARLY he had been traumatized by the event that left him dazed and confused as he watched the man who caused the scene drive away unscathed, followed by a dispassionate wife.

I gained a new appreciation for my manager today.  He is a kind and caring individual.

I hope he never has to fire me.

LOL

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