Nosegays

As a county employee, I've been laid off due to insufficient funds. I received the noticed 45 days ago and waited to see if Union negotiations would be able to salvage my job. They have gone on hiatus until the state budget comes through. So June 30 came and went, I packed my desk, turned in my keys and left; not knowing if they might offer me the position back at some later date. Such is the flow of things in a public funded organization in a state that never seems to get the budget out before fall.

This last week was full of people coming to tell me how sorry they were to see me go, how awful it was that things had played out the way they had and how much I would be missed; my smile, my energy, my team effort. Good luck lunches were thrown on my behalf, gifts were given and well wishes expressed. It was very ... I don't have a word, poignant? bittersweet?

I wanted to thank the staff in my department for their kindness; but time was short. So I got up early on my last day, went into the coolness of the garden and cut lavender. I made nosegays for each person, wrapping them with a fabric strip cut from all the purple I own. They smelled wonderful.

Thank you for showing me how much I mean to you. I had no idea it would be so hard to leave. The next chapter is yet to be written.