CHAPTER 1: THE END MARKS A NEW BEGINNING

The crowded bazaar was filled with people in gowns. The excitement in the air was heavy and the joy was almost tangible. The college graduates were happily mingling with their friends and family as they waited for the graduation proceedings to begin. While almost every person buzzed around with joy and anticipation on their faces, one lone character stood out. She sat on her assigned seat all alone and waited impatiently for the ceremony to begin. While her classmates took selfies with each other, she could only manage a weak smile. All she could think was how much money she was losing so that she could take a day off. Her phone rang just then and interrupted her trail of thought. It was her father on the line.

“Hallo dad,” she said when she answered the call.

“Hi Jess. Has it started yet?” Jack asked in a faint voice.

“Not yet dad. We are all waiting for the faculty to come. How are you feeling?” Jess asked while dreading the answer.

“I’m feeling much better,” he said and coughed a little. “I’m so sorry I can’t be there today.”

“I can feel you here. I know you are proud of me and that is enough for me”, she replied with tears filling her eyes.

She really wanted her father there but he was too weak to leave the house. If she had been able to make raise enough money to fuel his car, then her father would be here cheering her on. She barely made enough to feed them and pay their utility bills because the biggest chunk of her salary went to medical bills. Three part time jobs hardly covered their expenses but she was proud to take care of her father.

Things had not always been this hard. Jack, Jess’s father had always been a hard-working man who provided for his daughter. He had raised her alone after Jess’s mother died when Jess was only 8 years old. Jess had enjoyed the love and affection of extended family members as she grew up and she never felt the absence of her mother. She was fondly remembered by Jess as a kind and loud woman who was always laughing. Jess grew up adoring her father who would sacrifice his time to attend most of her special school projects. He had also saved for her college tuition and he paid almost all her fees upfront. Things would have gone well if he had been able to continue working until she completed her education. Unfortunately, he had developed a respiratory disease that made it difficult for him to breathe. It became difficult for him to do the simplest of tasks without exerting a great deal of effort. He had then lost his job through early retirement on medical grounds, and been denied his pension. He had tried running a small retail business but it had failed and sunk all of Jack’s remaining savings. The army of relatives that had previously swarmed around them were now reluctant to associate with them. Their reputation among friends and relatives became those of beggars, and the calls reduced slowly until they were isolated in their world of problems.

Jess had been forced to grow up really fast and take up the role of the bread winner. The last two years of her life had been particularly difficult as she watched her father’s condition get worse. His medical bills seem to increase each month and when she took a third job, she struggled to find enough time for her studies. This was why this graduation was a bitter sweet celebration. Jess began to think of her mother more often. She imagined her as a supportive and kind figure who would rescue Jess and her father from their anguish. The possibility of a better life seemed to lie in the far away memory of an ever loving, dependable and kind mother who would take care of Jess and Jack. Just for today, she wanted to be a child with two loving parents and a bright future. But all she was, was a struggling, broke graduate who had to go into the world and do the best she could to survive. She had had never missed her mother more than she did at this very moment.  

                                                                                                               *****

On the other side of town, William sat absent minded in his office in the NextGen office complex. He was going through dozens of pages of reports and he had developed some kind of brain fog as a result. His father depended on him to provide crucial information that would later be used to make a decision on the steps to move the company forward. Compiling the information on his desk into actionable steps was not an easy task. However, he knew that he had to this to secure the success of the business empire that had served their family for generations. He looked through the final page of the report and was surprised to find a proposal attached. It was from the human resources department and they had some insight on a new hiring technique that would improve their staff performance. The idea was based on the concept of creating loyalty by hiring fresh graduates, who would then grow within the company as time went by. The company would benefit from fresh input and a sense of loyalty from the grateful graduates. In return, the company could mould the new employee into a custom-made version of the model employee. William leaned back into his chair and laughed out loud. He had never read such a ridiculous concept in his life. There was no way a person could mould another to the point where they cultivated loyalty. In his short time in business, he had learned that people were either loyal or they were traitors. There was no middle ground where a person could be changed through persuading.

Theron, William’s father walked into the office just in time to hear William laugh. William described the proposal to him excepting to inspire similar emotions. Instead, Theron looked on with deep interest and began to ask question after question. When the questions ended, William sat up in his seat and asked,

“You are not seriously considering this are you?”

“Yes son. I think it’s a brilliant concept.”

“Dad, you can’t be possibly thinking about hiring naïve college graduates who bring nothing to the table.”

“They bring enthusiasm, hope and hunger.” Theron said.

“They also bring greed, impatience and a microwave mentality. They will soon demand exorbitant salaries and sports cars to match their lifestyles” William said with pure disgust.

“Yes, they will but out of a group of 10, we will get 2 or 3 excellent employees who will dedicate their lives to this company.”

“So, you are willing to waste resources training and offboarding 8 people, just so that you can identify 2 sterling employees?” he asked with awe.

“Yes. To spend money, you have to make money. And don’t look down on them. You are not much older than them,” Theron said getting up and walking to the door.

“Well, you forget that I started being active in the family business since I was 12 years old. “

“That was actually part of what I wanted us to talk about at dinner tonight. 7pm sharp. Don’t be late” Theron said then walked out. William shook his head and frowned. His dad always made plans without consulting him. “I guess it’s awesome that I don’t have much of a social life,” he chuckled to himself then continued working.

                                                                   *****

The graduation ceremony went well and soon Jess headed out. She stopped for a few moments to take a few photos with her friends then hurried to go tend to her father. Her first stop was the grocery store where she bought some vegetables and support fine cut of meat. She smiled as she thought how they would celebrate with a simple dinner for two. On her way home, she passed by one of her jobs and talked to her supervisor. Her colleagues were surprised to see her here today, even as they congratulated her. She put in her request for extra waitressing shifts and then left. The bus ride home was uneventful and she took some time to reflect. The qualifications she had just received gave her opportunities to improve her pay grade. A well-paying job could give her endless possibilities. Better living conditions for her father and improved health care. As the bus drew to her stop, she got off the bus and reality hit her. This was her life now and she had to accept it. She walked into the house with her load of groceries and placed them on the kitchen counter.

"Dad", she called as she strolled through the house trying to find him. He was in the dining room sitting at the window seat. "Hi dad, “she said with a smile. She leaned down and hugged him gently. He looked up with a sad smile on his face and said, "I'm so proud of you". They stood there in silence for a few minutes before they were interrupted by the sound of the doorbell. Jess walked to the door wondering who it could be. They rarely had any visitors.  She opened the door to find the neighbour Maedin at the door holding a beautifully decorated cake. "Congratulations dear child", she said with a gentle smile. "Thank you so much", Jess said with tears in her eyes. Maedin had been their neighbour for years and she was one of the few good friends that Jack had. She was happy for Jess's success. They got into the house together and placed the cake on the dining room table. Jess got into the kitchen and started taking out the groceries as her father and Maedin chatted. Just when she was about to wash the vegetables, the doorbell rang again. However, this time she didn't have to open the door because the visitors let themselves in. "Surprise!" they shouted in unison. Jess was indeed surprised to see her friends Todd and Leslie come in with another group of people.

"What are you guys doing here?" she asked. "Well, I decided that since I couldn't have you miss my graduation party then we had to bring the party to you," Leslie said. This time Jess couldn't hold back her tears. She cried as Leslie hugged her and they spent the next few minutes in an awkward silence. Todd broke the tension when he asked where the caterers could set up. A couple of minutes later, some of Leslie's family and friends arrived and they were joined by a few of Jess's neighbours. Soon everyone was eating and drinking as Jess and Leslie celebrated their graduation together. The party went on till late in the night, when the guests began to leave at their own pleasure. Her father went to sleep then and Jess stayed up with Leslie as the caterers cleaned up. "Where is Todd?" Jess asked.

"Probably dozing in the car. He wants us to go to the club". Leslie replied.

"Then go. Your boyfriend won't be too happy that I'm hogging you", Jess nudged.

"What about these guys," she asked referring to the cleaning crew that were just finishing up.

"I'll handle this. Don't worry. You've done so much for me already" Jess said. Leslie hugged her and she left shortly after.

Jess watched the crew for a few minutes then she took out her laptop and began applying for jobs. This was the arrangement that would have to work because her part time jobs did not allow her much more time for job hunting. She put in two applications by the time the clean-up was done. The house was suddenly quiet when the last worker left and Jess was finally alone. She gazed at her final job application with a mixture of sleepiness and anxiety. This job would be perfect for her because it paid as much as her three jobs combined. The working hours were slightly more than half of her current work load and the company even offered medical insurance. She really didn’t have any hopes of getting it because it seemed too good to be true. However, she had applied anyway and was looking forward to launching her career. "Time for bed," Jess said to herself as she shut down her laptop and headed to her bedroom. As she curled into bed, she smiled as she thought back on the beautiful day she had just had. Her heart was filled with gratitude and hope and she slept very happy.