FRIENDSHIPS
I Miss My Work Besties
They say you don’t know a good thing until it’s gone, but I did. I had a great thing and I KNEW IT. I had the best work besties and I miss them. I don’t know and I couldn’t guess or speculate what it was that made us click. We are pretty different and still…
I was a few months into the job when she joined. I was the first to greet her on her first day. I remember her cool blue-rimmed glasses and her oversized sweater. I remember she hugged me before I could ask her who she was there to see. She warmly introduced herself and patiently waited while I went to fetch her manager.
The next time we spoke, she was texting me on Slack. And I’m sure we must have exchanged some sort of platitude first, but all I can remember from that conversation is her saying: “Tell me all the office gossip”. I laughed nervously at that, because wasn’t she Human Resources? But she was never “HR,” she was “People” and there turned out to be a big difference in that. Non-judgemental but a great judge of character, the definition of warm, affectionate, and kind, maybe a shopaholic, certainly the best listener.
It was thanks to her that our little duo became three. She had been talking to a colleague in another area and invited her to lunch. Our new friend had (and has still) the prettiest curls I’ve ever seen in real life. She had a very specific hair clip and red shoes we’d later mock her for. One of the many inside jokes linking us like friendship bracelets. Soft-spoken, avid consumer of chamomile tea, she’s the slowest to anger, and most likely to react with raised eyebrows rather than the gesticulations that characterize the rest of us. She’s our keeper of calm and confidences.
A lunch, a slack group, a start.
We were pretty balanced, but surely incomplete because when “People” recommended one of her friends for a position, she was a perfect fit. With a contagious laugh and more hairstyles than all the clones of the Orphan Black TV series, determined and straightforward, the last addition to our little group is the first to share a fierce got-your-back smile when you most need it.
I’m summarizing, I’m sketching quickly and in grayscale only, just to give a general picture; some context. How can you describe the people you love in a paragraph? There are not enough literary devices to swiftly summarize their quirks and characters.
I had the best work besties on my first job and I KNEW it. Going into the office, getting lunch, heading to the happy hours, planning the work events, walking around the block, sharing cookies at the desk, posing for photos, biting my tongue to keep from laughing, I KNEW. I knew not everyone got to work with friends they could count on and learn from. I knew not everyone had colleagues they could trust with their f-ups and frustrations and all their maybe-this-is-a-stupid-questions.
Eventually, different opportunities took us in different directions. Daily meals together and always-on Slack became an async WhatsApp group chat. A new space, now that we’re spread across multiple time zones. Now that our annual face-to-face catch-ups happen only when planets align to match map coordinates and agendas.
And I should probably say, for the record, that I like my current job, my teammates and new work friends. Even so, today I was getting a little frustrated on a long call and it was a reflex. An unconscious sliding into the slack tab to text them. Watch me sigh as I realize for the hundredth time that things are a little different now.
I love that our friendship found ways to fill all the distances that separate us, and I love that when we catch up we laugh together like no time has passed, but… I miss my work besties.
I miss working quietly side by side.
I miss my loud eye-roll making you smile.
Our cathartic round-the-block walks
I miss our sometimes philosophical talks
You telling me to switch coffee for chamomile tea
And splitting the afternoon brownie
Seeing the spoils of your accidental shopping trips
I miss your calming words and super helpful tips
I miss how no matter how stressful the situation, we could always make each other laugh. I had a good thing and I knew it! And I know I knew because I can so easily bring them to mind: our stories and outings and all these little details. Like maybe even then, I thought it’d be fleeting and snapped mental shots of every little thing.
Sometimes frustrated, often nostalgic, always grateful ❤️.
What about you, dear reader? Are there experiences or people who made you stop and think, “This is it, this is the real thing” while it was happening? What tipped you off? I honestly don’t know if it was a wish or a feeling, or where my certainty came from. I just knew, know.
This article is solely for informational purposes and represents the writer’s personal opinion. Please seek professional advice if required.
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