Small Job Big Thanks

In case you think your job is small . . . here’s a reminder that is it NOT

Neither rain nor sleet nor dark of night shall keep the post man from his appointed rounds. Neither heat nor hail nor postal increases shall stop the mail from moving through your neighborhood. Ruth is retiring! Our faithful mail carrier of 15 years will be delivering our mail for the last time this Friday. The whole neighborhood knows and is sad. Ruth always got it right. She delivered the good news and the bad with a gentle touch. She had time to stop on the way to chat. So the people on her route know her and feel cared for by her.

There are days I walk from mailbox to front door and nothing makes it in the house. For I walk by the recycling bin and all the mail goes in. Nothing is worth reading or saving. I suppose Ruth could look at that and get discouraged, but I doubt she does. For there are days when she delivers birthday cards and wedding announcements. There are times when the tax refund comes or use to anyway. She is a messenger and that’s her job. It’s not small. It’s not light work. It’s not simple. She does it well. And this week her whole route is noticing at the same time. We have paused to say thank you. I think she is picking up as many cards as she is delivering this week.

It’s a little thing really delivering the mail. You could get it from a box at the office. And for that matter often Ruth brings just bills and junk mail. We all seem to communicate through email and other digital ways. So why is her job important? It’s the way she did it. She took pride in getting us news from the outside. She did her job with a smile, even in the rainy season. She provided for her family. Now she and her husband get to retire. Her husband is a mail carrier as well on an adjacent route. They will wake at 5:00 AM for the last time this Friday and commute an hour and half to sort the mail and get it to us on time, just one more time. They have already moved to the Sacramento River Valley and each morning have enjoyed a view that calms the soul. Next week they can wake at their leisure and laze on the porch a bit before checking their own mail box to see what their postal carrier has delivered to them. They will probably smile knowing what a hard job it is. I hope they will smile too knowing all the warm wishes for happiness and thanks they received when they retired.

In case you feel like the job you do is small, know there are others who notice what you are doing. We may not always tell others how much we value them but maybe we should start. Maybe we should make an effort to tell folks when they’ve done a good job. Not wait till retirement “forces” us to take account and notice. Last week I was in the City and watched as a man backed a semi-tractor trailer truck down a tight alley way to make a delivery. He stopped traffic for a bit. It took longer than some motorists could stand. There was honking and yelling. I just stood there on the sidewalk and admired as the driver threaded the needle. When he was done and took a breath I caught his eye as I walked by the cab of his truck. “That was amazing! You did it so well!” He smiled and made the sign of the cross. Somebody noticed. Somebody acknowledged his job.

It’s all well and good to do the kind Christian thing, to take pride in your job just for the sake of a job well done. But when you think God is the only one watching it’s hard. It’s nice to have someone on earth take notice. Have someone look you in the eye and say “Hey you do a good job everyday and I am glad you do it so well. Thank you.”

You may feel you are not getting enough thank yous in your line of work whatever it may be, but take heart, people do notice you. We are just lazy with each other and forget our good manners. Maybe you could hand out a comment of thanks and see what happens. I’ll bet one comes back your way sooner than you think.

Posted 10/15/2008 @ 11:52 AM | Weekly Thoughts