Monday, March 28, 2011

Dream Job

This past Friday, I had a job interview in Royersford, PA which is about 1h15 from Newark, DE and about 1.5h from home. I've been struggling with job interviews mainly because I've had the hardest time imagining myself as a career woman. Sometimes I'm so burnt out from school that I wanted to take a year off just to sleep and recover. Looking towards the future has been almost impossible from this burn-out and in reality, I have no idea what God wants me to do for a career but I do know that I want to love the Earth and want to protect it (instead of harm it like most engineering companies do) and that I want to love people.

I also do not want to move more than 3 hours away from home which greatly limits my career since most chemical plants are in the Gulf Coast or Mid-West and most environmental jobs are on the West Coast. That is a personal decision which I have constantly been trying to figure out if it was a God-directed decision or a selfish-decision. I think it is a God-decision but it took me a long time and a lot of turmoil to figure that out.

This job opening is my dream job. I'd be looking at manufacturing processes and products that companies want to be 'green' or 'sustainable' and show them how to make them better for the environment while they can still be affordable. Basically, if I could describe what I want to do, that's what I really want to do.

The people who interviewed me were awesome. And really nice. And very excited about my background. And the people who work there wear flannel and go biking and seem amazing. They told me that the next step is that they'd invite me for 3 days (while paying me for those days) to learn and work and do a 'trial-run' and then if I did fine (which I'm assuming I will unless if something major comes up), then I will get the job (: which is very exciting and encouraging but now my mind is off figuring out car situations and housing and budgets and how to make new friends and keep old friends. I'm quite bewildered actually.

For over a year, I kept crying to God to open up doors/windows and show me where He wants me to go and what He wants me to do. Whether or not this job actually comes through (pray it does please, kthx) is another story but it does feel nice that after waiting not-so-patiently God has encouraged me and given me hope. As over-used as Jeremiah 29:11 is, it really is true.

My next fear though is: When I move, how will I ward off all of those local creepers?

Monday, March 7, 2011

3 Stages of Females

I've been processing and thinking too much recently. Too many of my girlfriends have been struggling hardcore with boys, careers, friends, family, roommates, and other issues which then make me reflect on my life. But during this processing I've come to the conclusion that I think there exists 3 phases of a female's life: Girl. Lady. Woman. And naturally, there are transition phases from and into each phase.

Girls are young. They have the desire to play and experience life through young eyes with a (hopefully) carefree spirit. But as girls age, they transition into being a lady. Ladies are still young and require protection from the world as life circumstances shape their character and personality. Ladies desire to be beautiful and still want the attention that was bestowed on little girls yet ladies want their independence and adventure. I think this is where the "gentleman" came into play way back in the day and since ladies want independence and adventure, that is now why we rebel and get angry when guys try to open doors for us.

The transition from becoming a lady to a woman is different. I think only maturity, experience and attitude makes the transition into womanhood. I do not think there are any age approximations on when this occurs either. There are some people I know that are in their late 20s and 30s that I still might classify as a lady versus a woman yet there are some teenagers that I have met that I would say are women.

I think my transition into womanhood began a few years ago when my mother was so weak during the holidays that I was the one giving orders on how to get prepared for the holiday parties and began prepping the food and telling my (much older) siblings how to help. It progressed this fall when a family crisis hit and my parents did not know how to properly react or respond and asked me as an equal what I thought our response should be. Now to fully understand this, in my very traditional family when I have sisters 47 years old, we have a hierarchy of age and experience with which comes respect; I had always been considered young and immature in comparison to the rest of my family. Until recently. (Note: God clearly had been preparing me for this situation the last 4 years of my life. There is no way that my past experiences and passions are coincidental. Clearly God was at work preparing us for this crisis.)

I obviously am not a woman yet. I do not know many that are at my age but many of us are in that transition stage. My girlfriends are generally still are all ladies. While transitions are deeply personal and gradual, the way one transitions depends on our faith and the community that surrounds us. Adults and friends can help protect and teach girls life lessons, they can hold ladies accountable through love and guard ladies' hearts, and should encourage women in their walk with God.