Yo @brandonp, Where Have You Been?

I know I know, it's the question every single one of you has been asking yourself. So here's what happened...

Vacation to Ireland!

Yep, you heard that right. I spent a week in Ireland to enjoy the sights, sounds and Guinness of Ireland. It also just so happens that my girlfriend's birthday is St. Patrick's Day so we decided to finally check "Spend St. Patrick's Day In Ireland" off of our bucket lists.

It was absolutely fantastic. We stayed right in the heart of Temple Bar, which for those of you that aren't familiar with the setup of Dublin, is the epicenter of debauchery in a city known for having epic proportions of debauchery. It was a great time and I'm so glad that I got to spend it with such an amazing gal.

Temple Bar on St. Patrick's Day

On St. Patrick's Day, we saw some Irish dancing, listened to some fantastic Irish music while eating a beautiful meal, and then decided to post up at a pub and enjoy a few (or a few too many depending on who you ask) pints of Guinness. While it was mostly Americans in the pub we were at, we had a great time and were both "feeling ourselves" as the kids call it these days. We decided to hit up a restaurant called Pichet that we had tried to go to the night before.

It was well worth the wait. It was honestly some of the most delicious food that I had ever had in my entire life. I opted for the duck, which was cooked to absolute perfection along with some of the creamiest mashed potatoes I have ever encountered. The birthday girl ordered the halibut, which was amazingly meaty and broccoli that was to die for. Literally, I would have paid an exorbitant amount of money just for this broccoli. I can't recommend this place enough.

The Return Home

As with all vacations, they must come to an end. And this one was no different. We arrived home late Monday night and it was back to work Tuesday morning. It's at work on Tuesday where this story gets interesting and where the reason for my absence shines brightest.

For context, I worked in mortgage lending in a branch office where I was the only person in the office. About midway through Tuesday, I receive a call from my supervisor (not out of the ordinary since we worked as a team). He said he had some bad news. At this point I'm not sure what to expect. Did we lose a deal? Did something happen in the corporate office?

Worse.

He said, "unfortunately, today will be your last day."

I was shocked. Stunned. Dumbfounded.

This was the only company I had worked for since college. I had put more time into this firm than nearly anything else and now it was over. My supervisor said that he had missed payroll and that because of this, the president of the company was requiring a layoff. There were only three people involved in the company and I was the least tenured and apparently most expendable. He thanked me for my service and ended the conversation with something along the lines of "this wasn't an easy decision, but it's just business."

It's just business

Those words still don't feel real. I had poured so much time and effort into this company and in the blink of an eye it was all over. Like I never existed.

It was rough. That's an understatement. I was angry. I was sad. I was frustrated. I was scared. But most of all, I was confused.

How could this happen to me? What had I done wrong? Why me? Why now? Where do I go from here?

All of these questions and more filled my head. There were tears. I'm an emotional guy and this was one of the hardest things I had been through. I had worked so hard for that job and that company and now it's over.

I was in a dark place.

But when you lose something important, you can't help but feel extremely grateful for the other amazing things you have. I had just gone on an incredible week-long vacation with the girl of my dreams. I have people around me that love me. I have a support system that allows me to weather any storm. But most of all, I'm far more than simply a cog in a company machine.

I have value and you're damn right I'm going to show it.

So while one door closed, hundreds of other doors have opened. I already have had multiple job offers (all for a higher salary plus better benefits). I have multiple more interviews with companies that are far superior and will pay me what I am worth. I have the freedom to choose many aspects of my new job that I never had before.

But most of all, I learned that I'm resilient. I got my first real punch in the mouth and I just bounced back. Of course it hurt at first, most difficult things do, but now I am stronger for it.

It all happened for a reason and it all will work out in the end.

So what should you take away from this?

Hell, I don't really know. The answer to that is going to be different for everybody.

There will be people that read this and say, "you don't have it so bad! I've been laid off hundreds of times!" There will be others that say "you little bitch! Why would you cry over that?" There will even be others that will say "So how are you going to get your revenge?" (To this one I answer with a simple wait and see...)

But what I think everyone can learn from my story is this: You are more valuable than you think.

I'll say that again: You are more valuable than you think.

Don't let your boss, or your spouse, or your parents, brothers, sisters, cousins, pets get your down. You matter to this world and you deserve your spot on this earth just as much as anyone else. Don't forget that.

What does this mean going forward for you @brandonp?

Honestly, I probably won't be posting as much here on Steemit. I made a lot of my posts in my downtime at my previous job, which I now no longer have. Until I decide on a future path, there's a lot of things up in the air.

I love Steemit and I believe in Steem, but I'm not at a place where I can truly dedicate my time to it as much as I used to. As of right now, I've basically given my account over to @smartsteem to continue to do my part to increase the value of the platform while simultaneously earning a solid return on investment. Click the banner below if you'd like to check it out (yes it's a referral link)

I will always be here on Steemit whether that's lurking around and randomly upvoting posts, or resteeming high quality content. You can't get rid of me that easily, but the days of three to four posts a week are likely gone.

Trust me, I'll miss them more than you will.

-@brandonp