My mother’s career was the focal point of her entire life. She loved it, she nurtured it, she cherished it about everything else, including her children. And when it appeared that the career she had chosen forsook her, 30 years in, she was devastated and to this day grieves and mourns its loss and is, to this day, 10 years later, constantly grasping for those glory days.
I have never had a job like that. I worked in 1 industry for 12 years and changed to a different industry 3 years ago. Some jobs were better than others, I worked to support my family and as I changed jobs and get older, my income has increased at a moderate rate I am satisfied with. Am I missing something by not having the passion of my mother? I’m missing out on being a negligent mother, because my career always comes first, that’s for sure! J But am I missing out on having that all consuming passion for something I truly love?My entire adolescence revolved around music. Music theory, music performance, music history. My senior year of high school I was in three separate bands and my college degree is in music. But at the end of college, I had to face reality. I was not talented enough to perform and I did not wish to teach. That left me with a piece of paper and a chunk of life I could not build on.
Now, I’m getting ready to turn 40. This would be a great ending to the movie of the week about my life that is constantly replaying in my mind. In a world gone stagnant, she threw off the shackles of cubicledom! She broke out and blazed her own path to help the world and to do something she had always wanted to do…
But what is that? I have no idea. Every time I leave my therapist’s office or my child’s therapist’s office, I am consumed with this desire to become a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and parlay that into a career as a therapist. It seems noble, it seems interesting, it seems like something I might be good at.
I actually spent a period of time in Human Resources and enjoyed that. And if I were able to do that, I could even, possibly stay with the company I’m at now.
Both these ideas require returning to school, which requires money. These would also remind me that in 9 years, I have to start paying for a college education!
I have always loved to write and could pursue that, without giving up my current job of course. I have no illusions that I would become famous or anything, so that strikes me more as a hobby than an actual career path.
And the thing is, I don’t hate my job. In fact, since I’ve actually been doing what they pay me to do in the last 6 months, I find myself rather enjoying it. No, it’s not a life’s passion, but that’s because other things are more important. Like my child, my recovery, my friends. I can be happy in other areas (and I’m not Unhappy in the career area) and I can make a difference without a grand, life long commitment. I can accept that and be proud of what I do, which is helping people, albeit three or four times removed, all over the country. So maybe the Universe has me right where I need to be.
But damn, discovering the cure for something would have been a kick ass ending to the movie!!
I have never had a job like that. I worked in 1 industry for 12 years and changed to a different industry 3 years ago. Some jobs were better than others, I worked to support my family and as I changed jobs and get older, my income has increased at a moderate rate I am satisfied with. Am I missing something by not having the passion of my mother? I’m missing out on being a negligent mother, because my career always comes first, that’s for sure! J But am I missing out on having that all consuming passion for something I truly love?My entire adolescence revolved around music. Music theory, music performance, music history. My senior year of high school I was in three separate bands and my college degree is in music. But at the end of college, I had to face reality. I was not talented enough to perform and I did not wish to teach. That left me with a piece of paper and a chunk of life I could not build on.
Now, I’m getting ready to turn 40. This would be a great ending to the movie of the week about my life that is constantly replaying in my mind. In a world gone stagnant, she threw off the shackles of cubicledom! She broke out and blazed her own path to help the world and to do something she had always wanted to do…
But what is that? I have no idea. Every time I leave my therapist’s office or my child’s therapist’s office, I am consumed with this desire to become a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and parlay that into a career as a therapist. It seems noble, it seems interesting, it seems like something I might be good at.
I actually spent a period of time in Human Resources and enjoyed that. And if I were able to do that, I could even, possibly stay with the company I’m at now.
Both these ideas require returning to school, which requires money. These would also remind me that in 9 years, I have to start paying for a college education!
I have always loved to write and could pursue that, without giving up my current job of course. I have no illusions that I would become famous or anything, so that strikes me more as a hobby than an actual career path.
And the thing is, I don’t hate my job. In fact, since I’ve actually been doing what they pay me to do in the last 6 months, I find myself rather enjoying it. No, it’s not a life’s passion, but that’s because other things are more important. Like my child, my recovery, my friends. I can be happy in other areas (and I’m not Unhappy in the career area) and I can make a difference without a grand, life long commitment. I can accept that and be proud of what I do, which is helping people, albeit three or four times removed, all over the country. So maybe the Universe has me right where I need to be.
But damn, discovering the cure for something would have been a kick ass ending to the movie!!
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