one wall - the biggest one - is made of stone. another wall is entirely, floor to ceiling, glass. it is the best office in the agency. it is so good, it's even better than the ceo's.
when i worked at nationwide children's hospital, i had a nice office - one of the better ones. i had it for many years until one day, i got up from my desk, went into my boss's office (which wasn't as nice) and said, "i want to give my office to someone else. i've had it a long time and it's somebody else's turn to enjoy it."
my boss didn't try to talk me out of it (i think she knew she couldn't), but she was floored. "you want to do what???????" she said.
"you heard me, " i said. "i want to give my office to someone else. let someone else enjoy it. it's your headache to figure out who."
i walked out of her office, turning long enough to see her jaw on her chest.
i will never forget how surprised she was. how shocked. and i will never forget my reaction to her reaction - it made me sad. it made me sad to think that someone would be so taken aback by another someone giving up a nice office to another deserving person. we shouldn't be surprised by that, i thought to myself. especially in an office full of social workers!
but she was. we are.
today, when i moved into the nicest office in my current agency, i thought about the day i moved out of (one of the nicest) offices in my former agency. and i didn't see a disconnect.
what i saw, instead, was what Christ has been trying to tell us all along - that it is better to give than to receive. and that he who is last will be first.
and she who has sunlight streaming through one entire wall doesn't need to feel guilty about it.
and she who has sunlight streaming through one entire wall and doesn't need to feel guilty about it needs to hand it off to someone else some day.
i promise you,
i will.
