The True Cost of Success: A Reflection on Dr. Sharon

Dr. Sharon

Have you ever met a jaded person. Someone who seemed to be mad at her situation, her upbringing, her circumstances. I can understand that for those who struggle. If someone is successful, I expect that they would find happiness in their success.

Dr. Sharon was divorced, and she seemed to be embarrassed by her ex’s profession. I won’t mention it here. You should never judge people by the job they choose to do to support themselves.   She also was embarrassed by her parents. That was clear when they would stop in to visit her. She quickly rushed them into her office and then out again. They were a much older couple and spoke broken English. They were in Dr. Sharon’s words very frugal. Instead of going to their family doctor they would come to her to cure their minor illnesses. Dr. Sharon was a veterinarian. I guess in someway I sympathized with her plight.

Dr. Sharon was a bit greedy and maybe that came from her upbringing. She screwed a very loyal young man out of a partnership that she had promised him for years.  I left her employment shortly after learning about her disloyalty.

Dr. Sharon may have loved animals and may have been talented at her profession. In my eyes she had a lot to learn about being a decent human being.

It is sad that I came to that conclusion and that things ended as they did. I still have in my possession two different notes from Dr. Sharon written almost a year apart. Dr. Sharon was struggling when I started working for her. On two different occasions, she wrote very heartfelt letters of appreciation. She said I must have been sent from “Heaven Above” as I helped save her sinking ship. I still honor and treasure those letters. 

I just wish she would have shared the success with the young man she once had promised a partnership. She had known him since he was a boy, and he followed in her footsteps. It was disheartening to see the end of this story.

If I learned anything from this experience that I could share with others it is to stand by your word. We are not worth much more than that once we are gone. The things we leave behind will eventually be gone, nothing lasts forever. Even our word will be gone when the generations we left them with are gone too. No matter, I still will choose kindness and loyalty whenever I am given the opportunity.