To be honest, I had long held the belief that true friendships could only be found at school and college, and that beyond those walls, at work, companionship would be purely transactional. This cynicism shaped much of my adult life, and it was confirmed by the isolating experience of my first job. But then came my second job, near Sydney’s CBD—another corporate setting. Yet, from the very first day, something changed. It was as if a long-held illusion had been shattered with the force of a hammer blow. In that unexpected space, I encountered people who were not just colleagues, but kind friends. And for the first time since leaving the comfort of classrooms, I felt the joy of rediscovering trust, the kind that reminded me that friendship is not bound by age or environment.

In the course of my three years of employment there, many people came and went, but a few became dear. And the day I dreaded came: when one such dear co-worker—Emma— resigned after two years. But hey, how can we let her leave without a memorable farewell. So, this is how we planned it: Sydney harbour lunch followed by a scavenger hunt.

Sydney Harbour Lunch Cruise

We needed time to talk and unwind, and this lunch cruise in Sydney was the perfect choice. We chose a stylish catamaran that had spacious outer decks and a delicious buffet. And you wouldn’t believe it, she was literally crying while thanking us. She basically reminisced about her time in the company and her camaraderie with us. And every sentence ended with teary ‘thank yous’. And as the bottomless drinks came in, the emotions got intense.

The Opera House and Harbour Bridge were pleading to us to take a look at it, but we were immersed in the talks and emotions. The cruise lasted 2 hrs, and this was the best 2 hours of our lives, where everyone just unloaded the burden of their jobs, and was truly immersed in the moment. We were sure that this would truly move Emma and she affirmed it. But this was just the beginning—another surprise was awaiting her.

Scavenger Hunt

No, it’s not the average scavenger hunt you had in mind—not the hunt you do in an escape room or by hiring a private room to unearth unrelated objects. Our 2km scavenger hunt span across Sydney—from Darling Harbour to CBD. We had been planning this for weeks, and were sure that this would be the best thing we could do for her.

After our lunch cruise, we handed her over a sheet—full of clues—and she was stunned and didn’t know what was happening. The sheet was riddled with clues pertaining to our office moments, inside jokes and the places where we had a good time—cafes, bars and streets etc. The clues would have been Greek to another person outside our circle. The whole hunt was tailored just for Emma, and we just followed her. Her face lit with joyful smiles as she read the clues and discovered further ones.

And the last clue? It led her to our office rooftop where we used to smoke up (I hope my manager doesn’t read this). And at the rooftop, under the golden hues, we set up a projector and played a video— it played moments of laughter, sorrows and happiness. We even got our manager to retrieve the CCTV footage, and after hours of scavenging the footage, we selected key moments, including moments from her first day, promotion etc. And the video ended, and let me tell you, I’ve never seen a person crying and sobbing of being happy. All of us were overwhelmed with her kisses and hugs. But really, it was the least thing we could do for Emma.

And it all comes down to what Kierkegaard said: “Life can only be understood backwards, but it must be lived forwards.” We were happy that we could replay her past and inspire her future! And as tradition has it, we ended the day with a smoke and a drink!