He's a truely amazing person like we rarely get the occasion to meet these days. As things progressed, I was given full permission from him to do what I felt like would be good on our code repository for the system. Only major rework would require his attention. Updating the Linux kernel? Go for it. Fix up a systemd service so it works better? Sure!
I felt both valued and appreciated for the first time in my entire life. I looked forward to work every day. And for the first time in my life, I had good income, and I could finally start to pay for my own things. I can't describe this feeling.