We have Secretaries Day, Groundhog Day, April Fools day, and all the other prominent days marked out on our calendars, but there is no special day to honor or recognize the shift worker who provides goods and services for all normal people like us. As we enjoy our normal evenings and sleep-filled nights, not to mention holidays and weekends, the shift workers are on the job; the police on the beat, doctors and nurses at the hospital, the waitress at the local diner, water and sewer workers and other utilities, and all the other occupations providing for our needs while we sleep.
A professor of medicine has led the National Commission on sleep disorders research. Some of his findings include the endangerment of the health and safety of many Americans. Other studies indicated learning and memory problems, motor skills become impaired, resistance to disease drops, and accidents increase, to name a few. I know about these things first-hand; I was forced on the rotating shift and did this for 16 long years. The rotating shift is not conducive to a marriage or anything else. People's energy and alertness to enjoy even the simplest things in life dry up.
For those shift workers who choose their respective hours, or those who have no choice, or for those who have been inordinately punished, let's give them a break. I believe that these individuals need some recognition. And let's not forget those people who worked all night to bring you the morning newspaper.
Groundhog day should be put on the back burner. Just thank a shift worker today. I'm so very thankful I made it through. It's so easy to forget them!
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