3 July 2021, Somewhere in the Metaverse - UplandDood (@Just1Dood)

Everyone gets one

This is a fact of life. We go through school so that one day we will get a job. This is true for those who want to run their own business too. You still work a job. The only difference is that you don't work for somebody else. You work for yourself.

Given a choice, we probably don't want to work. But work we do because from it we derive our livelihood. It is a cycle for survival. We work to live and we live to work.

Those who are fortunate enough to work for themselves, have it better. You get to report to yourself and if you're angry at the boss, you have only yourself to blame.

Those who report to bosses can be fortunate too. Provided if you have understanding ones. Bosses who treat you with dignity and build you up instead of taking advantage of and treating you like dirt.

Everyone thinks so

Besides who we work for, where we get to work can make a whole lot of difference in our happiness index too.

How about working on an island?

Most of us when we think of islands, the word "Paradise" pops into our minds. This is especially true if there's a nice resort on it.

We think of laying on the white sandy beach, soaking in the sun, accompanied by the essential Piña Colada and a tablet in hand to read the day's new ReadCash articles. Day in, day out, enjoying the soothing sound of the waves lapping on the seashore. Ah, how nice.

Once tired of tanning on the beach, we can go snorkeling or scuba diving to enjoy the calming visual feast of colorful fishes playing hide and seek in the corals.

In the evening, enjoying fresh seafood barbeque under the clear evening sky is the order of the day.

A real paradise, isn't it?

I don't think so

Here's the reality of it. You wouldn't paint the same picture if the sole reason you were there is to work. Instead of tanning, Piña Coladas, snorkeling, and barbeques, you are there to ensure that the guests live in a paradise for the duration of their stay.

You ensure that they have not a care in the world except that they get pampered and are fully taken care of.

That was my experience. No, no. Not as a guest but as a worker. Day in, day out, I will clock in and clock out. Being on an island is no different than being in a city. The four walls of the office are the same. The cafeteria food is the same. Oh yes, the time clock is the same.

However, working on an island or on a city isn't so bad if you have an understanding boss. Someone who will take the time to plan up a career path for you. Someone who helps you see how you can improve (read - climb the career ladder).

This is again is the fact of life. We all go through this.

Everyone has one

Here's an obvious fact of life. We all get one life to live. It is not a video game. There are no extra lives, though that would be nice.

Given this reality, would you risk your life for a job?

In truth, all of us exchange our time (and skills) for money - that's work. If you extrapolate that, it does mean that we are exchanging a big part of our life for that. However, we are not risking it for a job.

I don't think many of you would have to answer this question. You will likely not be confronted with this question in your entire working life.

This was a very real question for me when I was working on an island. Initially, it was exciting. Who wouldn't? Remember what I mentioned about the general perception of islands earlier? No difference. I'm human too. The thought of being (working hasn't sunk in yet) on an island - "Wow. Lucky me. It's paradise!"

Truth be told, I did enjoy working on an island. For one, you don't have the opportunity to indiscriminately spend your salary. It is the best place to work in order to save money. Secondly, there are no distractions. Really. I was not distracted by beauties sunbathing at the sandy beach. I was locked up beyond the time clock, in an office with four walls far away from the beach.

Life was Work --->Eat--->Sleep--->Rinse--->Repeat!

This is it, I'm gonna die!

One thing that many do not think about when working on an island is that you can't walk or drive there from the mainland and vice-versa. Not when it is no less than 30 minutes by car to the jetty and another 40 minutes to more than an hour's boat ride, depending on sea conditions.

When I was working on the island, I lived there. "Daily commute" from the mainland was out of the question.

However, I do get to go to the mainland on my off days if I wanted to, which I seldom do.

Another thing we need to know is that some islands are located in seasonal climates. The one I worked in is one such. It has calm sunny days season and then it has the rain all day season. During certain times of the year, it is near impossible to access the island due to the guaranteed vomit-inducing, risk your life choppy sea conditions.

It was on one such day that I thought it was my last day at work. Last day not because I tendered my resignation or I was being fired. Last day because the sea had almost made that decision for me.

To cut a long story short, this was what happened.

It was on one of these extremely choppy sea days during the monsoon period. I was getting back to the island from the mainland. The boat jetty was located on a river mouth, not far from the open sea.

It was still low tide when we started. We have a window of time to reach our destination before the waves get really rough.

The ride started off as usual but around 100 meters from the jetty before we hit the open sea, there was a sandbank. As luck would have it, we were stuck due to the low tide. The boat operator and his assistant had to jump out of the boat to push the boat into deeper water. We were a little concerned as any delay would mean we will encounter more choppy water later on in our trip.

It took the boat operator and his assistant quite few minutes of struggle before they managed to push the boat into deep enough water for the twin engines to be lowered again. Once both the outboard engines were engaged, off we went.

After 15 minutes into the journey, the boat lost power on one of its engines. As much as the operator tried to restart it, it wouldn't. The waves were already building up. To make matters worst, a few minutes later, he lost power to the remaining engine. He told us later that it's running on 15% power. We were barely able to cut the waves. Each time a wave came, my life flashed before my eyes. A few times we were almost parallel to the waves, and I could see them coming to the level of the windows where I was seated. I was trying my best to fight off vomiting. I knew then what pray without ceasing meant.

I know that if the boat couldn't cut through waves, and ended up being parallel to a large wave or unable to ride up a large one, we'd be capsized. There were around 20 of us onboard.

A happy ending...sort of

Fortunately, the boatman was skilled enough to get us to our destination. Once I reached back to my quarter, I had to lie down. The earth wasn't spinning around the sun anymore. It was spinning around me. I had to lie down. Nothing else matters. I didn't care if the sun rises the next day or not. I just needed to shut my eyes and let the earth spin until it stops.

The next morning, I already have my resignation drafted in my mind. All it takes is to type it out and submit it. Submit it I did. I don't plan to one day die in the sea.

I don't plan to risk my life for a job.

Do you have similar experience? What was the scariest experience you've ever encountered in your working life? Do share in the comment section below.

Thank you for reading. Do share your own experience in the comment section below.

Stay safe and see you in the next article.

Sources:

Header: Unsplash.com - Hunters Race

Image 1: Unsplash.com - Markus Winkler

Image 2: Unsplash.com - Nathan Cima

Image 3 Unsplash.com -Silas Baisch

Thank you again for dropping by. Have fun with English. Remember to share your experience in the comment section.

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