Can I help you with something?

I got my first job when I was 14 working for my home city, a few years after I added on a job at a nearby grocery store.  I always enjoyed the customers that appreciated my friendly smile or happy greetings, but the ones I remember the most are the ones I would help out to the car or the ones who I would lightly bag their groceries to ensure they would easily be able to lift them out of the car when they got home; the ones who needed the help and happily accepted it.  Today I am an associate at a local scrapbook store, and I get to help people everyday.  I get to help them put together memories, create a memorial, or inspire them with invitation ideas for anniversaries, birthdays, and weddings.  I am truly happy when I can help someone solve a problem they are having and I can put a smile on their face.  The happiness doesn’t come from knowing I did it, it comes from knowing I just made their day easier.  I figure if I can major and take classes about something that comes natural to me, something that I enjoy, and something that is clearly already present in my life, than it was meant to be.  A few weeks ago, after spending nearly an hour with the same customer, the customer turned to my manager and said in reference to me, “whatever this girl ends up doing in life—she needs to be working with people!”  That was one of the greatest compliments I have ever heard, and I was so honored to have it be about me.  My experiences growing up with all of my mom’s limitations gave me the motivation to help people and my experiences working with the public has given me the confidence to pursue it in my life.

We are, we are

The future.  Nothing seems more scary.

I graduate in December.  10 months.  Whaaaat?

How am I suppose to know what to do?  I have a minimum wage, part time job.  A lot of customer service experience, but hardly any in my field.  Volunteering is something I would be honored to do, but who has time?  I could work less, but I need money to put in my gas tank.  Intrinsic satisfaction and work for the greater good isn't going to drive me around the city.

I've been meeting with a mentor who is a graduate student in Family Social Science.  She has been amazing.  We have reworked my resume so it is unrecognizable.  I am also in an internship course where I have to make an efolio showcasing myself.  Both of these things should really help me land a great job.  I also have my mentor and TA as great resources to use as I embark on this part of my life.  

The problem is, I just don't know where to go next.

They ask me what I want to do with my life, where I want to be, what I want to do...and I know, but I'm not fully convinced.  I don't know if I can or if that will make me happy.   The hard part is that nobody but me can make these decisions.

Grad school?  Maybe.  I had honestly never really considered it.  I think, maybe, subconsciously I didn't think I was smart enough.  However, it just might be in my future.  I've looked at a couple programs that really seem like something I would enjoy.

Well, I'm still scared for what happens in 10 months, 2013- will be a new year for sure.

Older Adults

In my life of 21 years, I have had many experiences with older adults.  A considerable amount of those experiences have been rooted in family events or relations, however some have occurred through volunteering opportunities or work.  I have definitely formed an opinion on older adults, even though it might be based on a misconception or two.  Reality is, one day I too will be an older adult and hopefully that day stays far away for a long time.

            I have volunteered for the city of Spring Lake Park since elementary school and began employment with them when I was 15.  Being involved in events over the years has allowed me to come in contact with many older adults.  Spring Lake Park is a very small suburb with an older population.  Many of the people who work there as well as the clients they work with are in their later 60s.  Looking back, I always felt welcomed and special to be working with that group of people.  While they were slower at completing tasks and preparing for events, they had a lot of wisdom to share with me while we were getting things set up.  I loved that about my time with the older adults of Spring Lake Park.

            I also work for Archiver’s, a photo memory/scrapbooking/card-making store.  Our typical customer is a 65 year old, financially well-off woman, with a grey perm, who is holding a coupon.  These ladies who shop at my store love to talk to us, learn techniques from us, and share their stories and projects with us.  I have learned from working this job how to be patient and teach things to someone four different ways before they understand.  I also pick up quite a few little tricks that only wisdom knows.  Everyday I have wonderful interactions with them and I wouldn’t ever want a different customer base. 

            I consider my family to include myself, my parents, my siblings and their spouses, my niece and nephew, as well as all my aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents.  My family is large and there is a good share of older adults that make up this family.  My grandmother had my mother at 43, which was quite old for 1955, and then my mother had me when she was 35, still a little later than most.  This sets the stage for me to have many older aunts and uncles who are in their 60s and 70s.  I have one aunt who has always supported me by attending extracurricular activities and people often times assume that she and her boyfriend are my grandparents.  It is a valid assumption because they are 70 and 75 and look like every other set of grandparents in the room.  However they are not the only people in my life who have been mistaken as my grandparents.  I can’t remember a day when my dad didn’t have his balding head of white hair.  There has been multiple times where he has been mistaken for my grandpa, and even recently he was referred to as my mother’s father. 

            Growing old in my family can be hard when feelings get hurt because certain people are assumed to be older because of the situation, but it has never been something anyone has seriously changed themselves to accommodate.  My aunts and uncles, and even my only living grandparent, my grandma, all seem to embrace the aging process by enjoying the perks it brings such as grandkids and even that 55+ menu at restaurants.  The older adults in my family get treated with the utmost respect.  There are moments where an older adult, such as my grandma or my aunt, will say a charged comment that I do not agree with, but I just bite my tongue to avoid disrespecting their values or opinions.  Personally, I have this rule in my mind that I need to always been extra smiley with the older adults in my life and talk slower and just a bit louder.  It always seems to produce a positive experience.

            I know I have misconceptions about older adults, that are true to a degree but I know they are wrong to generalize.  Older adults I know are conservative in their beliefs, move slower, and don’t understand technology.  These are things I don’t necessarily blame them for, but rather I am prepared to accommodate for these issues. 

            Honestly, it scares me to age.  I like to have a plan and know where I go next; well the thing about life is that it doesn’t always follow the plan we create for it, thus my apprehension.  I don’t want to think about myself aging, because that means my grandma is aging, my parents are aging, and this all leads to a lot of changes and adjustments I am not ready to deal with yet.  It is what it is and I can’t change it, whether I want to or not I guess I’ll grow up and deal with it. 

            

Favorite Excerpt.

"We must help families to find coherence within complexity. Bateson's apt metaphor, "We are called to join in a dance whose steps must be learned along the way.  Even in uncertainty we are responsible for our steps."

Amid the swirling confusions and uphevals, Bateson (1994) urges us to encourage families to carry on the process of learning throughout the life cycle in all they do, ". . . like a mother balancing her child on her hip as she goes about her work with the other hand and uses it to open the doors of the unknown" The ability to combine multiple roles and adapt to new challenges can be learned.  Encouraging such vision and skills is a core element of strengths-based approaches to family therapy."

We'll call her Nebraska, Nebraska Jones

Back on the bandwagon.  Yes, it is true.  I'm back.

I have once again started to blog.  Trendy?  Yup, well that's just me.

I have this friend, one of my besties if you will, and she lives in a land far, far away.  She and I usually email back and forth.  That is great and everything, but emails are just ugly.  Blog posts are prettier.  So here I am, a new blog at my fingertips and an audience of one.  Thats ok, because this blog, it is for you!  Made for you.

February 14th.  A day full of love.  I handmade Valentines, wore a pink cardigan, and enjoyed lots of candy with some special friends!  Sounds like a 70 year old woman, right? Oh well.

Today was also the day of a job fair/recruitment session for FSOS and Youth Studies.  I went.  And it was the straight up definition of an awkward moment.  Tiny atrium in McNeal, lots of students hoping someone will offer them the perfect, well paid job/internship, and 10 or so non-profits hoping to inform students about programs they can volunteer with.  Everyone shuffles around, looking, trying not to make eye contact, but yet trying to make some sort of conversation to avoid the obvious awkward atmosphere.  They also tell us to dress nicely and bring resumes....ok....how exactly do I get across the point that I really am a well educated, nicely dressed, prepared student when I am clomping around with a jacket, backpack, lunch bag, purse and four classes worth of materials?  This just does not work well.  It was a nice try, but after making myself listen to two groups' spiels, I had to be done.  In the end, I walked out with a pamphlet from the Public Health Associate Program and College Possible.  Both are actually interesting programs that I will look at again in the future.  Shockingly, the fair helped.

I responded to a ListServ email about volunteering in a 1st grade classroom a couple weeks ago.  I was very excited and responded with the times I was available.  The literacy block and the math block were the times that worked in my schedule.  It has been almost 2 weeks...and I haven't heard back.  You'd think if you're asking for help, and someone offers...you'd respond? Guess not.  

Beautiful Blooms?
A Year of Memories?
May I interest you in a workshop? Yesterday I got the pleasure of assisting in a class at work (Beautiful Blooms).  It was awesome.  I've always gotten the sense from our instructors that they HATE teaching...I enjoyed it.  I must be the weird one...what else is new? Ha.   Next week, I get to have my own class! And it is a scrapbooking one! A Year of Memories.  I am actually happy.  We'll see how I feel next week after the first class I guess.

To celebrate this special day of LOVE, I've had two tests so far and one more to go.  That's the wonderful life of a college student I guess.

Tomorrow I have meeting with my FUMP mentor, Jen.  It has been fantastic meeting with her the past few weeks.  I'll most likely come home inspired about my future, so hopefully you'll get to enjoy an optimistic post!

Happy Valentine's Day! Go listen to some Kimbra!

With LOVE