Reconnecting

Yesterday was a great day for many reasons. First, it's always good to not see your name in the paper. Second, I headed to work...good or bad job, a lot of people can's say that right now. And third, I reconnected with some good friends. After years of not hearing from someone who shaped my career and is personally responsible for so many good and interesting facets of my life, I called a friend I had worked with for several years. I (and it seems many others) have been sending him emails for several years and not received any replies. He travels a great deal internationally and for extended periods, so the non-response was really not a concern. After a couple of years, however, one begins to wonder if everything is ok. So when I called his restricted cell phone and he answered, the small bit of anxiety went away and was replaced with excitement. Turns out the email address he used was very outdated and no longer used.

This friend, Tim, was a co-worker, boss, confidant, and mentor for many years...a very unusual combination that rarely works. The two of us, and the company we worked for, had the opportunity to take a new molecule from its conception and turn it into a viable marketable tool. This entire process, which took about five years, culminated in the product being purchased by a multi-national animal food chemical company. During those times of working together, I learned more about marketing than I would have ever learned in an academic setting. Not that my post-graduate class work wasn't counted on, but when your career (and income) is on the line, there is a certain amount of very realistic "highs and lows" that enter your life. Aside from the actual business side, I was given the opportunity to travel the world, literally. Interestingly, the only part of the planet that I did not travel was greater Europe. But when it came to far-away places like Indonesia, Hong Kong, central and south America, Norway, and the entire North America continent...my passport is well punched! Of course, at the time, you're focused on the business, but there were those precious times when, seated outside a small cafe, buying lunch from a street vendor in Ecuador, having dinner prepared on heated rocks, or looking out the window of a floatplane, you have to realize you're enjoying special times. Now, that being said, I also remember Holiday Inns in DesMoines, being sick in Surabya, and trying, as a northerner, to sell product in the heart of Delta county, Mississippi.

I'll never forget the moment, when I happened to be standing at the fax machine at work, when the final offer to buy this company came slowly pouring out. I remember reading the offer and turning to fellow colleagues standing close. The offer was sensastional and the "ship" had arrived.

It was never the same after that year...and quite honestly, never the same since. There are only so many times you can celebrate, re-tell the story, embellish, and tell it again. People eventually move on, drift away, and, like all the products you see on late night TV, try to reconstruct that life. It just doesn't happen, at least not to normal folks like we were. Five fabulous years out of a thirty five career, is generally more than the average person will ever experience.

Tim was the man who brought me into that organization and, once again, is personably responsible for many of the mental treasures I have today. He was always a friend, a great boss, and stablle mentor. To reconnect with him today and hear his familiar voice made my day...not to mention that he made most of the life I have today.