Since moving to Belgium, I’ve often been in an office or a store with a question for an employee.  If that person isn’t sure about the answer, they’ll often say “I’ll talk to my colleague.”

Most times I pause when I hear that word … and reflect.  It’s not a word that I often heard in Canada.  I sense that it’s bigger than “co-worker”.  There’s a sense of connection.

Yesterday I was reading a book by Sharon Salzberg, an American Buddhist meditation teacher.  She referred to “my colleague Joseph Goldstein”.  They were two of the founders of the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, USA.  “Colleague”.

I Googled for synonyms:

Aide, ally, assistant, buddy, co-worker, companion, comrade, friend, partner, teammate

That’s quite the variety of relationships.

Now I’m smiling.  I like the word “colleague”.  It sounds like people in similar careers, but it’s more than that.  I sense caring about each other, shared goals, real contact.

Okay then.  I will seek out colleagues … in coffee shops, in music schools, on the street.

Us