Way to go!

“Thank you for the reinforcement!” He opened his speech.

We were at a team member’s birthday lunch and everyone asked ‘What?’ to this opening statement of his.

“Let me explain..” and he started a little story. “Once upon a time, there was this pillar. He took a lot of load on him and weathered the times. In due course, he started developing cracks and the concrete started coming off. He still stood, tall and erect, withstanding the load. This was made possible only due to the reinforcement present in the pillar. Similarly, I have had tough times during this project and carried a lot of pressure but I could stand tall only because you all provided the reinforcement! Thank you all very much for helping me and being there!”

Needless to say, we were all moved. The birthday boy in question is probably the youngest in the team and though very cheerful, happy-go-lucky kind of fellow, is a hard core programmer! None of us expected him to express himself so beautifully! He talked slowly, with lot of pauses and repetitions but conveyed his message in a very heart-warming way!

Ever seen and cherished those small plants that grow in the cracks of concrete slabs? If you have, you would know how it feels watching a young professional bringing rare human touch to formal, measured and often superficial world of professionals!