April 02nd, 2020

I don't know about you, but at our house the daily mail is fairly routine.  I can almost always count on a pile of advertisements for places we will never go and coupons for things we do not need.  Promotional materials arrive by the boatload and reminders of dental appointments twice a year.  Bills of course always arrive in a timely fashion.

On rare and wonderful occasions there is a card in the mailbox.  Could be Christmas, could be birthday.  Sometimes just a friend from far away just letting us know that we are being thought of and that is an absolutely lovely and unexpected occasion.

But recently, there was a bigger surprise in our mail delivery.  This box. And it was for ME!!!!!!!  

As you probably recall, in "normal times" one of my jobs is as a docent at the local museum.  It's a volunteer gig but I enjoy it very much.  Museums are absolutely my jam.  Always have been.  And my bosses there, Rhonda, Harry and Jon are just absolutely the best.  There has never been a day  there that at least one of them didn't say, "Thank you" at least once to me.  I know that my work there is appreciated.

I'm called a docent but my job has come to be more than that.  Yes, I still can tour people through the museum if they wish and I'm always happy to answer questions but I have also become the lady who decorates for Christmas and the one who reviews any potential book we sell in the gift shop.  Oddly, (considering my attitude about math) I have also become the lady who does the books.  It's just simple math. I can handle that.  

I am not really high maintenance.  I don't require a lot of attention.   The Thank you's are sufficient.    More than actually.  Because it's not just that they make it a point to say the actual words, Thank you Sam (for whatever reason it happened to be at that moment) but that they will make it a point to stop and just chat for a moment, to ask questions, to ask my opinion, to pass the time of day.  That's nice.  I feel like I'm a part of the Museum Family.  

So I was surprised to learn a few months back that there was a Volunteer Appreciation Dinner scheduled in April.  The first one I had heard about ever.  (apparently the one planned for the previous year - my first year there - was cancelled for some reason),  And I hate to say this but it does not appeal.  I know, I sound ungrateful.

I an uncomfortable in large gatherings.  Part of it is my hearing issue.  Too much noise is too hard to process, making it difficult to follow conversations.   Then there is just the socialness of it.  It's not that I'm a hermit.  I'm fine in small groups. But I've never EVER been comfortable in a large group.  I can do it.  I have done it. Many times. For one reason or another.  Weddings, Engagement parties, work related social gatherings, baby showers, lord help us, tupperware parties..... and the like.  But I am never EVER comfortable.  I slap the fake-est smile in the world on my face and I find it somewhere within myself to exchange chitchat with anyone who comes up to me, but I cannot relax.  What can I tell you, I am a weirdo.

But I was prepared to do my best.  Even though, I kind of dreaded it.

And all this virus thing happened.  And the museum was shut down.  And so naturally the Volunteer Appreciation Dinner was also cancelled. Of course it was.  

Now having never attended one of these Museum Volunteer Appreciation Dinners, I had no idea really what was involved.  I knew food  - the word dinner is right in the title  And I knew there was going to be some sort of game being played.  And it would be all of the Volunteers and the Museum employees.  That's it.   Sum Total Knowledge.

So when this box arrived I was truly surprised.  Apparently, this was going to be a gift given at the party to each volunteer. Awwwwwwww!  Unexpected and while appreciated, not truly  necessary.  I already know that my work is appreciated.  How very very thoughtful of them to not only have gifts for all of us, but when the party was cancelled, go to the bother, effort and expense of mailing it to us instead.  Dang!  That is downright Wow!  What awesome people.

​I am truly touched.

Now I feel a little guilty for not wanting to go to the Volunteer Appreciation  Dinner because I am a big old party pooper.  

Maybe this particular volunteer should learn to be a little more appreciative of her good fortune in finding this amazing group of people!