Actions Speak Loudest

Life's challenges hit me pretty hard when I was fired from a job I loved and sacrificed for after nine years of service. There were a lot of contributing factors to losing my job. The one that sticks the hardest was the part of my "performance" that included store morale. There was a young lady who worked for me. She was not only someone I hired and promoted, but someone who I worked diligently with to help save her job when she found herself on the verge of losing it based on her sales results. A few years back her father died. I tried to be supportive and understanding, but when she came back something had changed at her core. She became this nasty, negative person. She blamed everyone else for all of her failures and shortcomings. She called Human Resources for any slights against her...real or imagined...and she did it regularly without a courtesy conversation with myself or my assistants. This was the biggest contributor to "store morale". So yesterday, after making me breakfast, then taking me to an early afternoon showing of Brave 3D we stopped by my former place of employment to drop off my company phones and tablet. Ironically enough, she was working. The moment she caught sight of me she ran and hid in the back office. We were there for nearly 30 minutes and she didn't make an appearance once. I was gratified by everyone else who came out to say hello and give me hugs...and I'd be lying if I didn't say that her running and hiding didn't somewhat amuse me. Her behavior told me everything I needed to know about her guilt at her behavior. I acted with integrity and had nothing to hide. Even though the whole situation did not end well, I could hold my head up high and look the world in the eye. She could not say the same.