Everybody line up.
Parade to Celebrate
For this month, we are going to focus on work. Typically, humans work if they are able and are rewarded with pay for doing so. But at certain high points in life, in between those working moments, there are parades. These can be held in kindergarten, on holidays, to mark a death, to show off or to make an announcement. A good parade creates a sense of controlled enjoyment and there is usually special clothing or costumes involved. Humans are great at getting into lines also. Parades use lines to make sure that every participant gets a full viewing by the crowd. As long as the viewers are not too deep, it is fun to see how the subject is interpreted.
Holiday Parades
Processions need music. Luckily, parades often feature marching bands, small groups of musically inclined humans, kazoos or giant speakers playing upbeat songs. Even the well-known funerial processions of New Orleans include specific costumes and musical accompaniment. The transition in music during the parade has symbolic attachment and guides the parade. The same goes for parades that include military guards with extensive movements to show off their expertise. Drums keep the necessary beat along the route. Brass adds to the atmosphere. We have expectations of what a parade should sound and look like. Perhaps cave dwellers celebrated with ritualistic movements that became our modern parades.
Everyday Parades
Families and workplaces tend to have their own parades, but they don’t call them that. If you think about the entrance of family members into the kitchen in the morning or the arrival of workers for their scheduled shifts, we all can participate in daily parades. There are acceptable costumes included as well as ways of queuing up that make sense for each. If everyone in your family sits in the same seat every day, do you ever ask why? In the workplace, lines can form to get into elevators, entrance doors, and to punch in on time clocks. There are rules about line jumping. Think about grocery store lines. The constant parade of customers entering and exiting meets a certain standard. Let’s not start any fights in the checkout line.
Celebrate each Other
This month let’s work together to make the work world more of a place to celebrate. Humans have a lot of feelings about work including what they do, where they do it and why. But we don’t stop to celebrate that we continue to do it. We have an opportunity to get in line and add some music to the most mundane hours of some of our days. When you think about even your most average parade, there is some aspect of enjoyment attached to it. Even expected. That’s what we may need in the workplace. Let’s all line up for this one. While we are all together, we may be able to add some beats that make our feet dance along.
Are you working right this minute? Can you join or make a parade to enjoy it more?
