Training your elders

Training two women that are old enough to be my mother at work has been an interesting experience for me. Both of the women are entrepreneurial types. They have both had many more years of experience than me in an office environment. They both have had ideas on the way things should be done. This has been extremely frustrating to me. I have had a hard time keeping my patience.

The first lady quit, so now I have been training the new lady. She has been full of questions! She talks non-stop! It drives me crazy! She has dominated the training time. I have to keep saying that for time's sake, just watch me do it and listen to me. Her questions have not been pertaining to the issue or task at hand. She likes to show me how she used to do it. Or tell me a better/quicker way to do it. I have told her that this is the way my boss trained me and he has the final say in the mattter. I think she got the picture.

On a personal level though, I do like her. She is a christian and we have both talked about our churches. We have taken some time here and there to get to know each other better.

Both ladies have told me that I have been a good teacher. I have wondered if they were just being nice. But, they didn't have to say that at all.

Another thing that the women had in common was that they never gave birth to children. I wanted to ask if it was a matter of fertility. The first lady had a step-son that was 18 years old. She had married his father when the son was only one year old. The new lady told me that she divorced her first husband and that they just never got around to having any kids. Her second husband and her got married later in life. I have felt guilty about being excited about my pregnancy around them. I tried to only talk about it when they brought it up and asked me questions. They both seemed genuinely happy for me.