Recently I stopped working with someone I have endeavored to assist for over 15 years, the parting of the ways was not a mutual thing initially, but I have a feeling that it was desired on their part as well. This person is intelligent, though narrow-minded. This person has wisdom, but lacks common sense. This person is many things, but mostly a difficult person overall. You may ask, why would you continue to assist someone that is so difficult to be with, to work with, to listen to, and all that? I like a challenge, I also like to ascertain whether or not a person is genuine and has been left behind due to a lack of compassion on the part of others, or misunderstanding. In this case, the person has been given compassion when none has been due to them, has been misunderstood, but for the most part understood clearly and causes people to flee, rapidly, in the opposite direction as quickly as is possible.
I worked with people as part of my old job, I assisted individuals with mental health diagnosis to connect with services within the community, to attain and/or retain their entitlements, advocate for them in difficult situations, speak for them when they lacked voice, and just be an all around person they could call on for outside opinion and information.Most of the folks I worked with I learned from as much as they learned from me. As humans we can learn much from one another, if we only put our mindset on to look for lessons in every day experiences and find the lesson. As I have stated before, there are lessons even in our misfortunes, though difficult to find them much of the time, the lesson is overtly contained within the situation. It was in my old profession, that I met and worked with this person. I was assigned to work with them some fifteen years ago, my supervisor said, this person is difficult to work with and for, they warned me of that at the get go. I got my sparkle on, in other words,this person was a challenge presented to me and I could do what others failed to and in a respectful manner. I admit completely that I was always respectful when dealing with this person, as well as every other person I ever assisted in life. I never promised to do something I could not do, and I always helped them see the choices there for them, never choosing what path or choice to pick. Each person is an individual, one must assist each person where they are, sure use some of the same approaches, but never cookie cutter the situation, to me that is disrespect at a very base level.
Three years ago this week, I left my old profession. A few months prior to that this person and I discontinued our work relationship. I was urged by a supervisor to cease working with individuals that were not making measurable progress towards their life goals, as well as had become stagnant in their want and reason for working with me in the first place. This person was one of many I ceased a work relationship with, but many I have remained in contact with even to this day. Two years after changing jobs I received an email from this person of "note". They wanted and needed my assistance, they were willing to pay me from a trust fund they had received. I accepted the offer, it was mostly due to knowing this person was in need, and very little from the amount of money I would receive in return for any assistance I could and did provide. We worked on maintaining entitlements, organized important documents, discussed situations and people they had difficulty with. I had limitations in this relationship, those were presented up front. I had allegiance to my current job, which is nothing like my former one. As part of that I also had time limitations, especially due to the fact my current job involved and still does, working the third shift. For close to one year, this worked okay, but the person still had a consuming hatred of many factions in the world and clung to this hatred and mindset like well-set concrete. Several times I almost gave notice, they expected much more than I could or would give, and they also were not respectful of me and my time allowance. The very thing this person accused others of they themselves were and are guilty of. Finally I could tolerate no more, I gave my notice in early June, despite the fact that I had over 12 hours of unbilled services I had provided. It was no longer worth my time, nor my effort, and it was far smarter to just let go and sever all ties. I sent any important papers in my possession back to them, along with a simple note of resignation. I made not one reference to any of the negative occurrences we had, I just let go. Immediately upon this discontinuation I felt both relief and an incredible lightness in my soul. It is one difficult task to work with a person that has such a disjointed perception of themselves. It would have been easy to tell them how distorted their self-perception is, but they would not have listened nor have heard it, so I bothered not to launch into any explanation on this at all.
This person continues to blog, and I continue to read them. What this does for me is assist me in continuing to know that I made the right choice in my no longer interfacing with them in any and all circles, the severing was complete and quick. This person continues with their privileged behavior, blaming society and most of the world for why things are the way they are for them. This person continues with their hatred of some professionals they have contact with.This person in their sixty some years on this planet has still not learned about true respect for others. They act like some rare being, ostracized for all the wrong reasons and the champion of many causes. Frequently they get what they want for one reason and one reason only, people are tired of listening to their nasty banter and give in and give up rather than continuing to attempt reasoning with someone of skewed logic. I have learned many lessons from dealing with this individual, but mostly I learned that one needs to not continue to be a pawn for someone that disrespects me as well as countless others.
~balance in all things~
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