Good morning. Today had a good start. I got up with enough time to water before the heat hit so I wasn’t scrambling to play catch up to my morning. I always forget just how long it takes to water. In the evening it is a nice and lazy time, but in the morning it’s like the length of time doubles when I am not looking. But today worked out, so woo hoo for the watering. And the timing. So shall we get started on our morning prompt? Good. Stretch those fingers and set the timers because here we go.
Not my favorite, but I like the idea of only realizing someone working in the background is integral just as he plans to leave. I think it is a concept I will use somewhere else, even if it is a different story/plot.
Wednesday, June 15th: The applause was deafening.
The applause was deafening. He ducked his head and shuffled back to his seat. Alan hadn’t been expecting the applause. In fact he hadn’t been expecting an award at all. He knew that there were many being honored and he knew that there had been votes for several things. He vaguely recalled checking boxes at some point on a sheet of paper. He read it at the time although he couldn’t now recall who he voted for or even what the categories were.
He did remember at the time there was a problem with the main shut off valve. He managed to get the old one to stay but knowing it wasn’t going to hold, he ended up spending the night refurbishing an older one he found in storage and installing it as a replacement when the systems went down for the day. He remembered his frustration with slow ordering systems and budget cuts. He remembered his elation at finding a potential substitute and his satisfaction when the solution worked.
He barely remembered the page he was asked to use as a ballot.
That morning when he came in, he was told to smarten up and report to a designated seat in the front of the auditorium. He was in the second row, but it was a far cry from his back of the room space. It wasn’t that he didn’t like people or crowds or even attention. He just knew that with the older system, thinks tended to happen and he wanted to be able to nip out and deal with the problem when it was small rather than risk a major break down.
The award was a surprise. His co –workers reaction to him receiving it was even more of one. He didn’t think anyone actually noticed his work. Alan settled back in his seat and looked up at the row of important company people. They were sitting on stage. They had clapped politely when the auditorium erupted in applause, but now as the managing Director began his speech, they cast confused looks to him as though trying to figure out who he was and what he did.
Alan looked away and down at the small plaque he now held. ‘Above and beyond the call of duty,’ was the category he had been nominated for and won. Alan felt a flush of pride pink his cheeks once again. He always strove to do his best. It was nice to think that those he worked with noticed. He wondered what they would think when his retirement papers went through. He sent them in and was told that his last day would be today. He expected to be here another two weeks and he thought that there might be some small gathering. Cake, fruit punch and a wish for a good retirement from those he worked with. It seemed such things were not to be. There were too many food allergies and aversions for cake or fruit punch to be served and with the last round of layoffs there were too few people to complete each task.
As the company chair got up and took over from the managing director for his turn at speech making, Alan wondered who would be doing his job once the ceremony was through and normality resumed. Someone would have to. It wasn’t something that could slide.
Ten til Midnight 