Saying Good-bye

It became clear early this week that I won't be doing any part-time consulting for my employer, so yesterday was the end of that relationship. I have mixed feelings about that. On the one hand some consulting income would have eased the cash flow situation and left me with some familiar routines; on the other hand a clean break forces me to confront the future and expands the palette of life-design possibilities considerably.

Contrary to my expectations of Monday, the week was not dominated by a series of major work-related crises. There was plenty to do, but I was more focused on closure and leave-taking than fighting fires. With just 4-1/2 years on payroll, I didn't qualify for a going-away party (only the rare occasion of a full retirement at 65 or so warrants an official party), so there wasn't a ceremony for the psychic work of mourning or closure. An extrovert might have been disappointed or offended at the lack of attention, but it was a relief for me to not be the center of attention, and I was content to say good-bye individually.