Back to Work

After 6 months and 15 days, I went back to work part-time yesterday.  I had a lot of mixed feelings about going back to work.  I was excited to see my coworkers, and I was looking forward to feeling somewhat normal again.  But I was also apprehensive.  I was nervous I wouldn't be as good at my job as I used to be, that there wouldn't be a place for me anymore, or that I wouldn't remember how to do things.

I know my coworkers care about me.  While I was out, I received regular care packages from my office with thoughtful gifts and countless cards and notes.  I received regular emails and text messages from people across our business unit.  It was good to know they hadn't forgotten about me and were rooting for me to get well.  Even former coworkers sent me notes and gifts.  I was humbled by their generosity and thoughtfulness.

So, when I arrived on Monday morning, many from my department met me at my door to greet me.  And I found my office looking like this:

This was somewhat of a nice gesture, but also a prank - my colleagues have a history of pranking people when they are out of the office on vacation (think saran-wrapped office supplies, missing monitors, forts made out of cardboard assembled over cubes).  All things considered, they were nice to me and let me off the hook fairly easily.  Plus, our department head made sure the team cleaned up for me :).

It was nice to be back!  I didn't get a lot done because everyone kept coming by to welcome me back.  At the end of the first day, I was happy that I was back.  I really do work with a great group of people. 

I went to lunch on Monday with some of my coworkers from my previous department who have continued to treat me like part of their team.  During my absence, I learned that they created a network folder called "Project Megan."  They sent me cute videos they made and an iPad!  I was floored by their generosity.

Today I went to work with two former coworkers who have moved on to other opportunities.  During lunch, one of them told me how she learned that I had cancer.  One of my other coworkers called her in tears and told her she wouldn't tell her what was wrong until she stopped driving and pulled over.  They both cried on the phone together thinking about me.  It was a touching story (and it made me cry to hear it).  I'm so thankful to know they cared so much. 

With such great support from my boss, general manager, and all of my coworkers, how could I not be happy to be back?  I know that they will all be there to support me.  I am planning to work about 5 or 6 hours a day for a while (except for chemo days), so I am hopeful I can get back into the swing of things quickly and start making some meaningful contributions.