Working on Christmas due to Snow and Outages

So this Christmas was different than any I have ever had. This was the first Christmas that I was ever stuck at work and away from my family. It just didn't feel the same. It sort of felt like just another day.

Andrea and I worked a lot of hours this week due to the Level III Outage (over 50,000 customer without power) that we had. I worked 6:30-6:30 on Sunday, 7am-7pm on Monday, 5am-5pm on Tuesday, 7am-7pm on Wednesday, 5am-5pm on Thursday (I mean Christmas). Being at work and fielding escalated calls from customers who were mad, angry, and frustrated that they didn't have power tends to wear down a person after 60 hours in 5 days. I found myself rolling my eyes, getting defensive, as well as getting utterly annoyed.

However, working on Christmas Day while my wife was at home, was something different - it stunk. Not being able to spend time with my beautiful wife, in our beautiful home, with our great Christmas decorations and our dog Payton, added to my deteriorating mood. Add complaining customers to that and it's a volatile mix of emotion. It was a freakin' pity party for poor ole' Ben.....

...for the first couple of hours.


Then I began thinking. God is awesome and he looks out for His kids. So awesome that He sent His only son to Earth, FOR US! Talking to these people on the phone, I realize that they are talking about their power being out and Christmas being ruined, and no Christmas dinner. Of course, it is inconvenient and a drag - but it could be worse. I started thinking how fortunate I am that I have a beautiful wife to miss, and great house that I wish I was at, and that I HAVE Christmas decorations to miss and a dog that is thrilled to see me whenenver it is that I make it home. I am so thankful for my life and the things that God has provided for me and my family. I am thankful that God sent his son to us to forgive us of our sins by taking them from us and dying for the wrong things that we have done and continue to do. Putting things into that perspective, allowed me to create a more positive attitude while at work, and do my best to empathize with those customers that continue to call in. Don't get me wrong, there were some calls from folks that were very thankful that our crew were out there and that our people at the center were there to talk to them.

I hope that folks were not inconvenienced too much for the last few days while they were stuck in the snow, or stranded at home, or without power. No matter what mindset you're in, it's still kind of a pain. I think it's a great opportunity to reflect on the blessings that we've been given. Things will get back to normal before we know it. I am just so incredibly thankful that the Whitaker's have a "normal" to get back to.

Merry Christmas to everyone and I hope you had a great Holiday Season!