a couple days ago, it was my coworker's last day because she's retiring. she'll be back here and there working sub shifts, but this was her last normal shift working with us, so i wanted to properly say goodbye to her before she left.
i thanked her for her years of service and for being such a welcoming person when i started (genuinely i learned SO MUCH from her) - and i hoped that, with our two new hires we're getting next month, we could carry on her energy and that same welcoming feeling.
she responded that i already do that just by being unafraid to be myself, and how me being me goes a long way. apparently, a memory that sticks out for her that i totally forgot about was how while i was working at a pride festival for the library a couple years ago, there was one of those homophobic christian guys with a megaphone spewing hate. i brought it up as "just one of those things" that happens at pride, but it stuck with her that this is a reality i have to face. she even said to me that she's brought that story up to different people. and she thanked me??
and idk man, that just really got to me. that me having this different life experience opened her eyes a bit. that i wouldn't have felt comfortable being so openly queer if it weren't for her and others at my work being so welcoming in the first place. that me being me matters.