My Retirement Party

My retirement party was fantastic! I was thrilled to be honored as I was on my last day... amazing!

My retirement party was fantastic! I was thrilled to be honored as I was on my last day... amazing!

First, I had always assumed I'd walk out the door, upset, crying, but in the end, that didn't happen to me. Now Why oh Why, did I spend so many hours, for so many years, wondering HOW I'd walk out that door for the last time? I even asked co-workers how they did it. All that worry.. and it didn't happen. THAT is Anxiety...

Back to my party, my department organized a Retirement Party on my last day. From 2-4 pm, they invited co-workers to an Open House where anyone could drop by to see me. I'm not sure how they did it, but many retirees also attended (since I knew so many, that was my job for the past twenty-five years).

Those two hours were "surreal" as they say on the reality TV shows. Just an odd time where co-workers, department heads, elected officials and retired folks from my past and present are suddenly there... folks I never expected to see.

I don't normally do something like this. Lucky for me, so many people came and went that I had little time to really think about it, think about getting nervous about it all. I just chatted with one person after another and before I knew it, the day was over! Yes, I should have been "in the moment" as my sister would say, but honestly... it was a scary day for me!

My department did a fantastic job with the retirement party itself -- food galore, decorated the space beautifully, and just really did a fantastic set up job. I don't quite know how they accomplished it all (both the days/weeks before the party and the day of the party itself). But they did... and I thank them profusely.