One of Our Two Favorite Days

Today was one of my two favorite days of the work year.  It was the day I deliver cookies to one of the two courthouses in which I appear most often.  It is the one time of the year I can count on people being happy to see me.  In fact, they really look forward to it.  More than that, however, it's an opportunity to catch up with people I don't see all that often because I settle most of my cases, and to chat with those people I only see in a formalized setting.  Because of all that, it takes hours to deliver cookies.  It's not just me.  I ran into a colleague today who makes English toffee (known around the courthouse a "crack" because it's so addictive).  She was also delivering her wares, and I noticed that it took her about the same amount of time in each chambers as me.  I also love this day because I deliver cookies to the courtroom clerks, the clerk's office and a number of other behind the scenes departments.  These folks make the courthouse work (and when it doesn't work, it's usually because of problems in these departments.  They don't get paid a lot.  They don't get a lot of credit when things go right.  They have to deal with a lot of unreasonable people all day long.  They are beyond happy when people recognize the hard work they do and remember them at holiday time.  Our little Erin is now part of their ranks, so we know how wonderful these folks can be.  Oh, and did I forget the security guards?  No.  A lot of those folks have been there for years, putting up with people who don't want to empty their pockets.  Yet, they usually have a smile and a kind word.  Every courthouse contains a lot of hard working people doing their jobs.  They have more power than you think, and can make your experience in the courthouse more pleasant or more unpleasant by the way they do their jobs.  It's human nature to try harder to be fabulous and pleasant for those who appreciate what they do.  I think they have tough jobs and for the most part do them well.  I tell them that a lot.  The cookies let them know I value what they do every bit as much as I do the people in positions of power.  They truly are Here in the Trenches.