Fleeting

BLM WHM SMN SCH THF RNG BRD MNK WAR DRK PLD > 99

A gift for all of you, on Memorial Day.  

A bird will fall dead frozen from a bough without ever having complained. (GI Jane, by now you can start to see some of my "textbook" movies) And after it does, it might fall into a warm pile of crap and despite the rank smell, it might be able to survive and soon it might feel good about that.  When it does, it will start to sing, at which point the cat that just laid that crap might just inspect it and wonder "whats up with this crap?" and then if it finds said bird, will kill it and eat it.  

Moral: If you are warm and happy, even if you are in a pile of shit, don't start singing.  

I know, that's not a very nice gift but I was thinking of a time in Citibank, from reading the previous journal, when we were all freshly SAVED from having agreed to unions(CWA) and management was so happy about that that they adopted the SEVEN VALUES not the least of which was Associate Delight.  And often they would SPLURGE on cakes and cookies and bowls full of chilled sodas for whatever "training" meetings they thought we needed which they labeled "focus groups".   

The time that we spent on these focus groups was basically FREE time that we were off the phones talking about the calls and in theory correcting what could be corrected but mostly just connecting with co-workers.  

"With the best of intentions..."  

It even came to pass that the credit card threw a corporate party for us which was basically a SPLASH of cash, which felt like a night on the town but where we ALL were the hot dates.  It was quite phenomenal but you'd think you could not get used to this and that NO WAY would people ever complain... but they did.  

I have probably mentioned it before, so I will skip all that but remember on this memorial day that you might think WOW why do they waste all of this money on us lowly associates?   Why don't they just GIVE US the money they spent on this party or on these medical benefits or on these equipment itinerary items like staplers?  Why are they so stupid?  

Well, I want you to SEE all of this for yourself MSNBC or HBO or CNN, to see this experience of mine that when you are doing good, money will splash all around you and you may want more of it but you should MIND your MOUTH.  That money they are offering is temporary and fleeting just as is popularity.  

All it takes is for ONE PERSON to get appointed to look into the morale situation and you won't see an abundance of gifts anymore.  NOONE believes in bribes as a positive re-inforcement tool so as soon as one person chants out BRIBE... there go all the gifts.  Where?  Usually it goes to the stockholders who get a nice .05 cent uptick on their quarterly dividends yes?  Good job selfish people! 

So celebrate your White House parties and your Memorial Days off and your cakes and cookies meetings because remember this... we had those, and once gone, they NEVER came back.  

And this is like a Guardian Angel, once you've chastised him, he helps you, shows you how powerful he was, then disappears to where he came from and perhaps where he should have stayed.  

That's goodwill... it's fleeting.  

PS: If you wonder about what you are about to say, ask yourself, am I building?  Am I helping people around me to stay happy? 

EDIT: And this should remind you of Clash of the Titans, since that movie best describes fate, is that "a divine gift should never be questioned, merely accepted.".  This means the gods may want you to serve some divine purpose and they help you if you choose to accept their challenge(remember that they are gamblers after all).  But "you must choose" like in the third Indiana Jones movie, where choosing wisely... is hard.  And remember that once in the arena you might refuse to help the gods and if so, they may sanction you(how do I know?) and when it happens it's important, before too much time goes on, that you let everyone know this happened to you, but... um... (crooks his finger)... come here and he will tells you a secret... (chuckles)... everyone already knows...