WELCOME ANYWAY

And from not wanting to say a word, I felt myself gushing it all out to those strangers in that room. I told them about the thirty years service I had given, the days when I would arrive early and leave late without asking for any overtime or praise. I told them about the sacrifices I had made with my health and my family. And they just sat there and listened to me, a few yawning and a few looking out of the window. Most of them though were typing on computers, last minute adjustments to CVs and applications I guess.  

And when he felt that my outpouring was over, the man in charge, the man whose job it was to find us work, a man younger than my own son put his hand on my shoulder and thanked me for introducing myself.

‘Thank you’, he said, ‘and welcome anyway.’