Leaving - Relief at a dear price

The ending is so very bitter-sweet for seasonal workers. On the one hand there is an almost uncontrollable relief that you are done. You never have to go back again. You can if you want to in a year or two maybe, but until you decide on that, you have the peace of knowing that you don't actually have to go back. Leaving right after August like I am is a prime example. August is the peak of the season. To give you some idea of what it's like let me elaborate.

At the Jordan Pond House Restaurant, at night, in the middle of August, we can easily serve up to 200 people between 6 and 9. That was my experience this year anyway, but our tourist count has been low all summer. Most restaurants, even in the middle of town, consider anything above 80 a jumping night.

The end means that the stress is off. I don't have to perform for anyone anymore. No more scraping down the grill at night. No more dealing with the nasty floors. No more smelling salmon on my hands when I tuck them under my head at night after my shower. All of those are sweet, sweet thoughts.

But there are so many other thoughts that are of a most horseraddish-like nature. No more thumb wars with the finger puppets from Geddy's. No more Ladies Only breakfasts. No more cranking the music up in the gift shop right before it opens and dancing with Rosemary. No more offers from Eric to walk me home at night; and with it no more mile-and-a-half long conversations. No more Friday nights with Dawn and Pawel. Possibly the worst is no more of my beloved Bulgarians. Many of those that came back, I feel closer to now than last year. We've just gotten to know each other so well. It wasn't until I started saying goodbye to them that I started to tear up. In general, I'm not a very teary person. There are some things that get me "every time" but not many, and parting is not one of them. But it is a very good chance that many of the friends I have made here in the past couple of years will not return and I will never see them again. Thankfully there is so much technology, our worlds have grown very close together. Sometimes though, that just makes it harder. They will be so close, and yet so very far away.