THE LAST PARTY // Weekend-engagement post topics 76

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It wasn't my final party, nor was it anyone else's, but it was the last one we had together. "We" here means my former boss and my partners.
In 2017, a company that produces tents was built in my hometown. It's a Korean company. Thanks to that, we can meet, work together, and stick together. The director's kindness at the moment was what made me admire and always be with this organization. That is the first time I have seen such a close and intimate working environment. Even though he is the company's CEO, he always treats everyone like his family, without discrimination.
I remember that after six months of working together, the first order was shipped to Europe without a hitch. He threw us a celebratory party on the weekend. An outdoor party took an exciting place. Everyone, from the company's management to the workers, shared the same atmosphere and joy.

Nobody thinks that our boss personally prepared this party. He prepared all the dishes and drinks, even charcoal for grilling meat. His assistant said he stayed up until midnight marinating the meat. He was also the one that stood and grilled all of the meat for us during the party.

Have you ever met such a dedicated boss? For me, it was the first time and the first person.
Since then, he has thrown three such weekend gatherings for us every year. After months of hard work and fatigue, what could be more fun than when we all get together, eat, drink, and sing. At times like these, there are no more distances, only friendship, and closeness. I love those weekends.
That wonderful moment, however, did not last long. My boss was obliged to transfer this company to a Chinese corporation since he had to take on two enterprises at the same time and was running into too many problems.
In 2019, before he left, he threw us the last party, and it was the last one we had together. On that day, tents were displayed a lot in the outdoors, creating a beautiful space. But he no longer marinated and grilled meat by himself; instead, he hired someone else to serve the party for us.

photo from Ngo An

He probably wasn't in the mood to do that. The company was both his passion and his aspiration. He didn't think he had to give it up so soon. During the whole party, his heart was heavy, and our hearts were not comfortable either. Everyone was sad as we could no longer work with him and as everyone's efforts had not been able to save anything to keep this company for him.
After eating and chatting at the party, we met at a nearby cafe. Everyone took turns giving him gifts and saying goodbye to him. The handshakes and goodbye hugs are hard to describe with all the emotions. And we cried. It was a party we will never forget.

photo from Huynh Dieu Thuy

Although we no longer work together, the love and memories that we had for each other will always live on in each other's hearts. It was the most beautiful, happiest time we had. At work, it will be rare for you to encounter such a working environment. And I'm still grateful that I got to live in those beautiful times.
No farewell party is easy, and it's even harder to say goodbye to someone who has been with us for a long time. You will remember that first day you met and the excitement of your first-party together. You'll miss someone's quirky sense of humor and all the memories you've taken together. There will be tears and confused feelings, but that is worth the parties since it contains a lot of emotions from those who depart and those who stay.
Let's cherish the parties together while we can still be together.
This is my entry for topic this week. Thank you for reading my post!!