Once Upon a Time

It was blizzard conditions, and not one of my three cars would start, but I'd only been working at the company for about 2 weeks, so I bundled up in my coveralls, hat, and facemask and started walking the 10 miles to work. I'd gotten about 3 miles when a man in a pickup stopped and asked where I was going. I said to the feedlot down that away. He said that coincidentally, he was as well. So he asked if I wanted a ride, and I got in. He turned the heat on high and asked why I was walking. I explained about my car trouble and said there was no way I was going to call in because of weather. He said, "I certainly wish I had more employees as dedicated as you." I asked if he worked there too, and he said, "I own the joint." He dealt with a lot of people who were a lot higher class than me, but from then on when he saw me, he called me by name. You always felt like you were part of the family when you worked there. (K. Coulson, personal communication, August 22, 2008)