Goodbye notes

Our CEO and president is retiring and there was a party celebrating him. We were all asked to give him some advice on how he should spend what he calls his new abundance of "discretonary time." I gave him the same advice I keep giving myself: notice everything and take notes.

Now that you have the time to notice things, slow down and take notes about what you see, hear, smell, taste and feel. Notice how fast a child grows. The moment fall leaves first start lining the streets. The way an entire afternoon can disappear when you’re reading a good book. How good a hot cup of coffee smells from your front step as the sun rises. Where your wife likes to sit as she reads the morning paper. What your kids’ voices sound like when they call to wish you a happy birthday. Notice what it feels like to have the time to notice all of these things and more. Wear out your senses with noticing! Breathe in the good times, the laughter, quiet moments, and know that while you will be missed here, we can’t wait to hear about all you notice.