Say A Little Prayer For You

This story happened a few weeks ago, but I decided to wait until after the A-Z challenge was over to share it on my blog. Enjoy.

 

It was just a normal day at work. I had music softly playing in the background while I tackled my To Do list one item at a time. But then my personal phone started buzzing. A co worker's name popped up on the screen. For a split second I though about not answering it. Not that I didn't love chatting with her, but I was in the middle of entering a report. But then I figured if she was calling my personal phone, something may be wrong.

I'm so glad I answered that call. On the other side of the line was my friend's voice. Shaken. Panicked. In Fear. A member of her family was in the middle of surgery and my friend was worried they weren't going to make it through. I could hear her voice cracking as she asked me to pray. She then admitted she's never asked anyone to pray for her before...but she didn't know what else to do.

After offering her as much comfort as I could, I hung up, took a deep breath, and prayed. And then looked online for "surgery" prayers, changed the words to one and sent it to her in an e-mail. I also asked two of my other coworkers, both spiritual people, to pray with me.

For the next hour or so I prayed for my friend and her family. An hour later, she sent me a message that her family member was out of surgery and doing okay. Relief.

I share this story to tell you that sometimes we need each other. And it's okay to ask for help, and for prayers. I keep thinking what if my friend had not called me? She would have let it stew inside her brain and her nerves would have been totally shot. But she felt comfortable enough coming to me and saying "I need help". I was proud of her. That takes courage. It's not always easy to reach out to your friends when you need them.

I take my role as a Christian pretty seriously. When someone asks me to pray for them, I do my very best to make it a point to actually pray for them. It's what we are called to do. And you don't even need someone to ASK. You know how sometimes, someone will just randomly come to your mind? Take that as an opportunity to pray for them, or send them positive vibes. They don't have to know that you did it...but you'll know. It's a reminder that we are all connected for a very special reason, and that our duty is to be here for one another.

I wish you all a very happy, blessed weekend. My best friend, a coworker and her best friend, and myself are headed to the Taylor Swift Concert tomorrow night. We are going all out, because, well, why not? So if you see 4 gals in their late 20's decked out in red and glitter, that's us.

Avenue

For the A-Z challenge, I will be writing about MEMORIES. A is for Avenue- my first job.

All through high school, I babysat often during the school year and worked as a nanny during my summer vacations. When I came home from college after my freshmen year, I hit the pavement looking for jobs. Most of the kids I had babysat in the past were old enough to care for themselves now, and I wasn't having much look securing a nanny job. So I had to look elsewhere. I started filling out applications left and right. One day, I walked into Avenue, a women's clothing store. The woman who handed me the application seemed very enthusiastic. She let me fill it out right then and there, and asked me questions about my availability. Just a few hours later, I got a call to come in for an interview the next day. I was nervous. I had never really had a job interview before. The interview was quick. I wasn't feeling too confident. I was a shy girl, and I knew that came off in my interview. I figured they probably assumed I couldn't sell clothes.

I was wrong. They offered me the job that same day and I started within 48 hours. My first few weeks were terrifying. I had to force myself to talk to customers and was not comfortable around my coworkers. They were all older than me, and I couldn't relate to their conversations. I spent most of my time folding clothes and avoiding the cash register. I never wanted to make a mistake, so I figured I was safest out on the sales floor, folding clothes, steaming clothes, and putting shoes away.

There was one week where I only worked with one other girl, my manager, Charlene. Suddenly we grew very close and were laughing and joking around. I started speaking up more, and became a master at the cash register. Once Charlene and I became friends, everyone else seemed to embrace me a little bit more. They all protected me. They loved to make me feel uncomfortable, but would also rescue me if I was in a tough situation. I remember one specific incident where a customer was in my face about something that was totally out of my hands. One of my coworkers stepped in, pushed me aside, and told the woman to leave the store and to never talk to me like that again. I took a sigh of relief and thanked my coworker for saving me.

One of our responsibilities as employees was to get people to open up a store credit card. I hated that. We had to ask a customer in three different ways. It got annoying, fast. But we each had to reach a monthly goal. Again, my coworkers came to the rescue. They coached me through it, and a few times would put my name down because I was the one who helped the customer on the floor.

Despite my shyness, My absolute favorite part of the job was walking around on the sales floor and asking customers if they needed help. I heard so many stories that way. People looking for an outfit for different reasons- asking questions about sizes and colors, asking my opinion about outfits. It was so fun to interact with them, and it really broke me out of my shell.

I continued to work at Avenue on Christmas breaks and summer vacations until my senior year of college. The years blend together now. Customers came and went, but we always had our regulars. At one point there was an incident when one of our comanagers left. It was a tension filled environment for a while as people took sides, and shortly after that, I left for good. I had to say goodbye to that chapter in my life. But I will never forget it. Working at Avenue was good for me, and my self esteem. It helped me to work through fear. So I guess the lesson in this memory is this: even if you don't think you can do something, you probably can.

tightrope walker

Something has happened, dudes. Something I didn't see coming. I guess it's been slowly building up for the past year and a half. But it hit full force.

I really, really care about my coworkers. Even the ones I don't particularly like.

How did that happen? I'm not sure. I mean I've made some great friends at work. But it hit me yesterday as I walked up and down the hallways giving away tissue paper made flowers just how much I really CARE about them. I worry if they look upset, I jump to help them if they are having issues with their computer or tablet. I hope that they have a good day and a relaxing weekend. I hate that they work too much.

When I first started this job I was terribly shy. In some ways I still am. But mostly, I have grown out of that. I have gained confidence, enthusiasm, and, most importantly, I have gained several important relationships.

It would be silly to name my coworkers who have become my close friends. I don't want to leave anyone out, and there's too many. They know who they are. But let's just say they all fill a different purpose. Some act as my "work moms". Some annoy the daylights out of me. Some I turn to when nothing else is going right. Some I go to for laughs, encouragement, eye rolls. One has become one of my best friends. One is my best friend and has been since we were five. And one is the gal I can talk to about Taylor Swift, boys, and Constant Comment tea.

I have so much respect for my coworkers. We have a difficult job. Every single day we are working with people who are dying. We work with their families who are fragile. We go into nursing homes and assisted livings, all of which have a totally different system and personality. Our work is difficult. Challenging. Frustrating. Heartbreaking. But they are amazing. Caring. Beautiful. Strong. Compassionate. Some of them don't even know how great they are, how many lives they touch. How much they are appreciated. My life has been significantly impacted over the past year and a 1/2 by knowing these people. So at the end of the day, when I'm tired and frustrated, I keep in mind how lucky I am to be surrounded by such people.