Today is Labor Day so I wanted to talk about what the labor movement meant and why this is a National Holiday. Instead, there is something else that I want to say.

I learned that the labor movement in the United States grew out of the need to protect the common interest of workers. Which, being a worker bee myself, it was important to understand why we celebrate today. It was for better working conditions, better pay, reasonable hours. But, it’s the working conditions that I really want to talk about.We all know that there are times when the working conditions at our employer isn’t ideal. Whether it is safety hazards, concerns, or just we have no positivity for them at that exact moment. And yet, there are other times when working conditions bring out the best in someone. And, I am seeing first hand how the ideal working condition at my husband’s place of business is finally bringing out the man I told him he could become. All because of Pete.

My husband’s self esteem isn’t the best. He grew up thinking he was good for nothing. That he would never amount to anything. There are voices in his past he has always had a hard time disregarding.

When I began to date him in back in 2001 I pushed him a little. But, when your other half is telling you that you can be everything you ever wanted to be, sometimes it’s hard to see that because we think, “Well, you’re supposed to feel that way about me!” I’m not saying he didn’t grow. He learned a little confidence here and there. But, he always stayed in his comfort zone instead of testing waters to see what he could really do.

Until Pete.

Pete is his boss. The CEO of a quickly growing business. You would think that with the growth he would be too busy to care. But, he does. He has taken my husband under his wings and has begun to groom him. And in the last few months I’ve been watching my husband with incredible pride. He started as low on the totem pole as you possibly could. An outsider looking in. And not yet a year into the business he went from an apprentice chemist to the production manager. He has found a voice. He has found his footing. He has ventured outside of his box.

All because of Pete.

I can go on and on and on about how so very proud I am of my husband. But, on this Labor Day I wanted to spotlight Pete and his management style, his need to create an atmosphere of learning and respect within his business.

Pete, thank you. Jeremy couldn’t see all the things I tried to explain to him. All the things that I saw in him. How amazing he could be at anything he did. How smart he was. How kind, loving, and honorable he was. He couldn’t see that he was anything good. Until you began to cultivate out of him those very traits. He needed someone other than me to bring out his potential. To push him, to encourage him, to respect him. Thank you.

God is so very good, Pete. Jeremy left his job with so much uncertainty. He was paving a new path. We stayed with it, putting our trust that God was going to do all that He promised He would. And then you came along. Thank you for giving my husband confidence, helping him to find his voice, and believing that he could truly be everything he ever imagined to be. Thank you. xoxo