This is my second day into the PASS Summit 2013, and the excitement is still rising. My first day was great, but it was mainly about execution plans and optimizer stuff. Today I haven't learned anything about SQL Server, but I have learned a lot about PASS and about the people in this community that make PASS possible.
I had several meetings today with other chapter leaders around the world and with community evangelists from PASS. I met a lot of great people, and I realized that there are two things in common to the thousands of people attending this event: we are all here for SQL Server, but we are also here to share. Everyone here is looking to meet new faces, to create new relationships and to share their knowledge and experience with each other. I met people from Germany, France, New Zealand, South Africa, Belgium, England, and many other countries around the world. All of them have the same desire for meeting and sharing, and it’s wonderful.
A lot of people here volunteer and help make this event successful, not because they have to or because of the paycheck. They do it because they care and because it means something to them that is much more than a paycheck. And this is beautiful. I remember the first time that Maria Zakourdaev (Blog | Twitter) attended the PASS Summit a few years ago. When she came back, she was thrilled, and I remember she told me that she doesn't want to miss any PASS Summit from now on. Since then Maria is always looking for ways to contribute to the SQL Server community. Today I think I understand what she felt back then.
Some people refer to this community as the "SQL Family". I don't know why, but I truly think that there is something unique about this community, which is different from other IT communities. It's like a big family, and I'm proud to be part of it.