Thank you, RAF

So today was my last day at work and now I'm officially on vacation for at least 1 month. This is starting to become real and yet sometimes I can still hardly believe it. I've caught myself wondering who that person was, a year and a half ago, for the 28 years prior. The old life just seems like a dream.

Throughout my transition, I've tried to check in with myself: Is this really who I am? Is this worth it? Can life really be this good? And the answer after more careful pondering was always yes. Sometimes it's just so hard to imagine ever being that awkward computer nerd most people remember me as.

I wrote an email to the managers and a choice few others at work, letting them know my status on the projects I'd been working on as well as my availability for emergency bug fixes and builds during the next month (excluding next week). At the end of the email, I wrote: "Thank you all for working with me to make this happen." My eyes started tearing up after I wrote that and I realized how grateful I am to have the employer I have, especially during this difficult transition.

So many people with similar transitions are often fired or laid off simply because they need to stop living a lie and yet for some reason I was given this blessing to be able to keep my job and even still, be accepted at work.

I just want to say thank you again, RAF Technology. Know that all of you have helped this woman find peace.