I am truly grateful to the person who accepted me as part of Data Acquisition Electronics team years ago – Friedl Bartsch. During his last days with us I was able to extend my gratitude to his family and learned that his wife Claudia shares the same Catholic faith as me. I regretted that I never talked about religion to Friedl but just to share one of the conversations I had with him, this one left one unforgettable impression on me.
During one of our trips, I told him that “NY cops need to spend more time in the gym compared to Sydney cops to be able to outrun or catch the criminals.” Friedl replied,” The bullet is fast” then he smiled. It was a joke for him (I thought) but for me it was confirmation of the need to continually upskill oneself in whatever he does in life – as a hobby or professionally for the service of humanity. In terms of the police officers – to keep peace and order. This idea of working well resonates with my belief in Catholic faith – Jesus Christ hidden life. Christmas and easter seasons need no introduction but Jesus Christ hidden life. taught me something more.
.Just starting his public life, during one of his teachings, one of the audiences said, “Is not this the carpenter’s son?” (Matthew 13:55-56) instead of saying, “Is not this the son of Joseph?”. This just show the reputation of his Father as a carpenter. Imagine Jesus the Son of the Creator of the whole universe, working as a carpenter. Since Jesus is also a perfect man (without the influence of concupiscence and the pride of life), then he also had to learn his father’s craft. Jesus hidden taught me that working well is one of the ways to serve others.
The reason I am telling you this is because I saw in each one of you the same eagerness to produce quality work during those times we worked together or in passing. Witnessing you applying your well-earned skill helped me develop and be better as well. So once again thank you. And for Friedl, I thank God for having known you. You inspired and helped many others in one way or another, you will never be forgotten.