Work Place Gratitudes

I am fortunate to have spent most of my Labor Day week-end doing precisely what I would have chosen to do:  some sewing, some writing, lots of wonderful opportunities to be with a wide variety of friends, many of whom I wouldn't have known if we hadn't shared a workplace together at some point in our collective lives.

I also kept track of my online classes, which doesn't feel onerous--just one of a wide variety of online activities.  I did some work planning for the 2017 Create in Me retreat; I shepherded a Facebook Planning Party by posting a prompt each day and trying to return to the site to post further thoughts as the day went on.

Yesterday I realized that I hadn't completed some required training sessions, and so I did that.  They were very similar to other online training sessions I've taken, and they make me realize how lucky I am to have a safe workplace throughout most of my working life.  I learned such nuggets as "Do not push, shove, or trip your colleagues.  Do not yell."  Really?  People do this?

And yet, I know they do.  We have to do these trainings because somewhere, someone thinks it is O.K. to put hands on their colleagues.

And of course, they do so in creepy ways too.   The sexual harassment videos always make me feel unsafe, by reminding me of all the ways I could be unsafe.  Happily, no one in my office needs to be reminded, "It is never O.K to watch pornography on your office computer."

Who thinks that it is O.K.?  But once again, I've seen statistics that say that 75% of porn is watched during traditional work hours.  I'm guessing it's not all unemployed people watching that video.

So yes, as we leave Labor Day week-end, let me breathe my gratitude in and out.  Let me also send out my fervent wish that we all have safe workplaces where we can do meaningful work.