I have had many jobs over the years, and gotten to know a lot of people on a very personal level. I mean we spend more time with each other than we do our own families. They say it takes only 21 days to form a habit, so after 21 days we form a comfort in coming into work everyday, and seeing the same faces. When I've changed jobs I've always got this overwhelming sadness of leaving my "work family" and today I had to say goodbye to one of those family members.
This co-worker and I have spent almost everyday together since we started working at our current job. We would take our breaks together, go get lunch together and whatnot. This co-worker was nothing more than a co-worker, we never talked outside of work, we never hung out but I formed a habit of knowing everyday I would come into work and see this person.
What I find troubling, is not that I won't see this person anymore, not that this person no longer works with me, but that this person has chosen the life of gang violence is a better route for him. My co-worker came in and got his final paycheck and bragged about the new tattoo's on his hands that showed off the affiliation to this new gang, and about how he's getting it "blasted on his neck and bottom of his chin" I wanted nothing more than to grab this person and shout "STOP! Don't do this" "You are better than this!" but the person who walked in today, was not the person I saw last week.
This person was cold, this person was hard, not the outgoing, funny person I knew a week ago. Today my heart is a little broken, again, not because I am no longer working with him but because I lost my friend to the gang life. I am almost 28 years old and this is my first experience with this type of thing. I am trying so hard to process this but for the life of me I can't understand why.
Maybe I don't understand because of the life I've lived, the way I was raised but I don't understand why someone who has so much potential, would chose the gang life over everything else? Over freedom, over family, over life.
Why would a parent chose the life of gangs and drugs over their child? I gave this co-worker many praises for how much they showed off their child, talked about their child and now they are choosing to drag this same child, down a road of violence.
My heart is broken for this child.
My heart is broken for this co-worker.
Why?
This co-worker and I have spent almost everyday together since we started working at our current job. We would take our breaks together, go get lunch together and whatnot. This co-worker was nothing more than a co-worker, we never talked outside of work, we never hung out but I formed a habit of knowing everyday I would come into work and see this person.
What I find troubling, is not that I won't see this person anymore, not that this person no longer works with me, but that this person has chosen the life of gang violence is a better route for him. My co-worker came in and got his final paycheck and bragged about the new tattoo's on his hands that showed off the affiliation to this new gang, and about how he's getting it "blasted on his neck and bottom of his chin" I wanted nothing more than to grab this person and shout "STOP! Don't do this" "You are better than this!" but the person who walked in today, was not the person I saw last week.
This person was cold, this person was hard, not the outgoing, funny person I knew a week ago. Today my heart is a little broken, again, not because I am no longer working with him but because I lost my friend to the gang life. I am almost 28 years old and this is my first experience with this type of thing. I am trying so hard to process this but for the life of me I can't understand why.
Maybe I don't understand because of the life I've lived, the way I was raised but I don't understand why someone who has so much potential, would chose the gang life over everything else? Over freedom, over family, over life.
Why would a parent chose the life of gangs and drugs over their child? I gave this co-worker many praises for how much they showed off their child, talked about their child and now they are choosing to drag this same child, down a road of violence.
My heart is broken for this child.
My heart is broken for this co-worker.
Why?
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