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Wicker Duck

This is a wicker duck carrying a small garden of succulents in its back. I did not buy this duck. This duck was a gift. An unexpected gift from one of my student employees whose last day with us was yesterday. She has finished her classes, clubs, and internships -- y les hizo a sus padres, inmigrantes de México, el mar de orgulloso de ella -- so will graduate in two weeks. I cried on receiving the duck. She went wide-eyed and mortified on realizing that she had given a duck to someone named Donald. Then we both laughed.
Looking at my wicker duck, the disappointments and heartbreaks recede away from the certainty that the joy one earns along the path of serving others is always worth the risks. My (now former) employee will experience her own ups and downs in the life that stretches out in front of her. No doubt, on one day when she needs it most, someone will give her her own wicker duck.



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