Frankfurt… last time here was in 2006, worldcup, year my mother passed away… …yesterday, gate C15 Lufthansa, 10:23, running like crazy to try to arrive on time, of course all the odds were against my urge to arrive home… My flight coming from Switzerland did work well, but a slight messing up in the halls of the Frankfurt airport is enough for you to make a 40 minutes not enough, then 10 minutes were between me and my kids…. arriving at the security line a huge mess, something found in some bag and nice tourists not previously warned really wanted to take with them the 5 sunscreen bottles bought very diligently for their “weltmeister pokales sommer” or something like this (summer of worldcup prize), which was nothing appealing for a Brazilian… “Sir, is this the fast lane for the leaving flight to Caracas?” “Ja…” “…then, are they also going to Caracas???? We are going to miss the flight…” “Nein, they go to Mexico…” “Sir, I go to Caracas, this is the fast lane to Caracas, isn’t it???” “Lady, patience, we need to solve this first… Are you in a hurry?” “????????????? My flight is leaving Sir…” ….. … at the C15 gate, all closed, but the plane staying still there as if it would be waiting for me, but again it was confirmed that tears do not work when the gate is officially closed and the whatever-airport-highest-command had closed it… I could not help myself and cried so much that the ladies asked if someone was dying at home… Nothing to do, but really, the worst thing that can happen in a business trip, that had already taken your Saturday, is for you to miss your flight back… I was crying until finding the service center counter and change my ticket to the next day, Sunday. Well, I went to the airport hotel, checked in and decided to choose for the find-the-positive-in-everything attitude my mother always taught me, and being in Frankfurt reminded me of my mother a lot! It was warm, very warm, 34C degrees! I took my Havaianas, left my luggage and went to the downtown… …WOW!!! I have never visited Frankfurt when I was living in Leverkusen, and when I was for the worldcup, I did not notice how beautiful Frankfurt was! The only detail was that WHENEVER I went, with my modest German, they asked me where I come from and after the answer “Brazil” a smile came up from EVERYBODY I met… 🙂 “Schade…” I heard this so many times, but it was in such a nice way, of most of them, that I almost felt sorry for myself! This is a side of the Germans that I did not know, and Germans keep surprising me positively, they really are polite and humble! All places that I visited, the politeness, the attention, it was not how I remembered of Germany, the summer, the warm weather, Das Pokal (the worldcup prize), I think everything was in favor for this happiness. The streets so clean, the places full of people, but still the queues run, the orientation of the people for you to find a street or a place were always so precise. …even the stress of the cashier when something was not working, finally in Germany all works… Suddenly I had an insight, a feeling, something that I think I needed to feel… Suddenly I was so glad that I had spent 17 years in a German company, in 6 different countries, I was happy that most of the success that I am being able to have is due to this learning, the structured way of thinking, the processes, the strive for perfection, many things that were catalyzers of my Japanese background! I am having this feeling of accomplishment later that feels so good, both in private as in professional life, I feel so happy to be brave enough not to accept circumstances that do not fit my life and yet take chances and opportunities that appear in a moment that you can not understand, and still feel ok with leaving behind something that you cherish so much and feel owing something to… Here and now I found the answer for it, we must be loyal, not to a company or persons, but certainly to their teachings and philosophy, and whatever happens in your life, important people who were part of it and companies, organizations, will know that they are part of your life path, successes mainly! For that I want to thank my previous company and all my colleagues from the past 17 years, having left does not mean that I do not appreciate or admire all I lived. Indeed I am very proud for having worked 17 years for Germans, I am very proud to say that most of what I learned and make me a good professional and person, I have learned from you Germans. I am very proud for having lost the worldcup for the Germans, there is no other nation in this moment of my life, for which I would be more proud to have given the Pokal to in my country!
Thanks all Germans that were, are and will be part of my life, you are all an example to me!!