The comfort of friends

I am often amazed at both the tenderness and the cruelty that human beings are capable of. Along with owning a gym, I also manage an office a few hours a day. My boss is an older American gentleman. He is very amusing and often uses southern expressions that I do not understand. An example of which is “I am up to my knees in alligators and have no way of draining the swamp.” I thought that this had something to do with going to the bathroom, I guess because of its reference to water and drainage. Turns out I was way off base and it refers to having far too much to do with no end in sight. Like Nostradamus his statements can mean just about anything until fully explained. He would be amused that I would compare him to Nostradamus since the two are very little alike. Bob dresses in jeans and t-shirts, races cars and takes little care with what he puts in his mouth, from food to cigarettes. He is however a source of endless entertainment for me. He is high strung and often goes off on tangents yelling and carrying on. Although his rants are thrown in my direction they are seldom directed at me. He will vent about just about anything and often without cause. Banking, Orders, Invoices will send him into a tailspin. I will sit back quietly until the storm passes and then do my best to fully explain the situation, assure him that all is under control and that there is no need to worry. Yesterday was an uncharacteristically bad day for both of us. I reached the office late, he was in a rush to leave for a business trip, and we were up to our knees in Alligators…etc. The circumstances caused us both to be about 4 degrees above irritated and with only the other to take it out on, we spent a good 3 hours at each others throats. My normal patience for his rough edges was wearing thin and his normal intolerance for detail was at an all time high. I had a headache and was in no mood for the volume of noise he was producing. He was being unusually cruel and eventually he wore me down and I began to withdraw. I became reserved and was not providing him with my normal calm reassurance. He continued his barrage of negative remarks and I continued to retreat. I was on the verge of tears when I rose from my seat and announced that he could continue yelling if he liked but I was leaving. As I walked past him, he reached out and stroked my hair. I looked at him and all the anger, agitation and contempt was gone from his face. In its place was understanding. “Go home.” He said, “Take an Advil and put your feet up. I am sorry.”
I felt my shoulders relax and my headache ease. The tension of the day evaporated with just the touch of a friend. He was not my boss at that moment. I looked at him and realized that we were friends as well as colleagues. That we recognized the others limits and responded when appropriate. Nothing more needed to be said. What a comfort it is to work with a friend.