A couple of things have transpired in recent months that have pointed out just how much of a dinosaur I am, how completely the blood and bone and soul of me is connected to times gone by. Not just the physical part of me, but the inner me, the part that determines how I view and respond to life and human interaction.
The first came when my son was laid off from a job he really liked. It happened around the middle of December, and he was told the layoff would last until the end of February, possibly the beginning of March. Then, in January, he got a letter from his insurance company saying his policy had been cancelled. He called his boss to find out why and was told they weren't calling him back. No phone call, no text message, just a cancelled insurance policy to let him know he was out of a job. In my world, that's a completely shitty move.
The second instance happened just a few days ago when I received a letter of censure from the WVU Extension Family and Community Development Director. The letter stemmed from the incident I mentioned in "Do As I Say, Not As I Do." Apparently, someone (unnamed in the letter, but I suppose the lady who quit the club) reported me for reading her resignation email aloud to the club. Furthermore, it was reported that I, and others, had engaged in verbal attacks against her, questioning her character and mental health. That "attack" was someone mentioning that a friend of theirs suffered a major personality change after undergoing chemo, and wondering if Jane's behavior could possibly be related to her own chemo. Beyond even that, it has been reported that I "demonstrated disrespectful behavior" towards the Extension Service Committee itself. (I've no idea where this one came from, because I can't, for the life of me, recall anything remotely approaching this accusation.) Apparently, continued violation of the code of conduct may result in further action, including the possibility of suspension or termination as a volunteer. Well, allrighty then.
Whatever happened to the concept of human decency and integrity, where you dealt with people "up front"? The idea that, when faced with a difficult situation, you drew a deep breath and dealt with it instead of ignoring it and hoping it just went away? Or of asking someone accused of misbehavior if they did, in fact, misbehave and, if they did, why they misbehaved or, if not, what actually happened?
I don't know where all that went. It seems to have been replaced by ignoring unpleasantness, as in the first instance of letting someone go without telling them you were doing so or, as in the second instance, assuming you know all the facts of a situation based on a single accusation. This isn't the way I operate, or ever have.
Yep, I'm a dinosaur. And I am eminently okay with that.
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