The Last One In

There’s a certain kind of pride in being the person people call when it all goes wrong.The tradesman who shows up after everyone else has already given up, when the jobsite is a mess and the plans have fallen apart.

I’ve been that person more times than I can count.The last one in.The one who stays late to make sure it’s done right, even if it was never my mistake to fix.

There’s a quiet ache that comes with it.Because no one ever sees what you carried to get it over the line.They don’t see the hours you spent cleaning up problems that weren’t yours.They don’t see the frustration that comes from knowing it didn’t have to be this hard—if people just cared a little more, or planned a little better.

But they also don’t see the small moments of pride you feel when you walk away knowing that, despite everything, you left something better than you found it.You built something solid in a world that so often feels temporary.

That’s the part I’ve learned to hold onto.Because there will always be shortcuts, always be people who want the fastest, cheapest answer.But I don’t ever want to become someone who stops caring just because it would be easier.

This Tape is for every person who’s been the last one in, the one who picks up the pieces, the one who cares too much.It’s a reminder that there’s strength in refusing to cut corners—and that sometimes the most important work happens when nobody’s watching.