“Some days are diamonds,
Some days are rocks.
Some doors are open,
Some roads are blocked.”
- Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, “Walls”
In February, I applied for my first job. It was a position not too unlike the one I currently have, and it was for the national office of my sorority. I didn’t get it, but I was so proud of completing my first job application. I survived a tornado. This particular tornado leveled the college across town and much of the north part of Jackson. And it just happened to hit when I was in that part of town. I was tucked safely away in the walk-in fridge of our friendly neighborhood Chili’s, and it didn’t dawn on me until much later that I could have had a lot more to complain about than having cold toes. As an intern at the Red Cross, I was given a firsthand look into the aftermath of the tornado, and I am so, so grateful that it didn’t touch my school. If that’s selfish, fine. I still feel blessed to this day that everything was fine here and that so few people were actually hurt. God is good.
I started spending inappropriate amounts of time on Career Builder and Hot Jobs in March. In fact, I had my first few job interviews in March and thought I’d land the perfect job by the time I graduated. I was wrong. Again, you’d think I would have learned that when I make plans, God doesn’t listen, but I still try. (I’m stubborn. It’s a blessing and a curse — I won’t give up or go down without a fight, but it also doesn’t stop me from not realizing my plans are not necessarily God’s plans for me.) I spent my final spring break at my parents’ house. The trip there involved me sliding off the highway into the grassy median between the northbound and southbound lanes because IT SNOWED. If I hadn’t already made my mind about NEVER living in Indiana again, that pretty much cemented it.
April saw more job interviews and more disappointment in the working world. I spent four years chairing every committee I possibly could, joining every organization that held my interest and that could be scheduled into my too-full schedule, and learning everything I could learn about my intended career. I am qualified to do more than sell things. I also decided I was iron deficient and that, if necessary, moving to Memphis could wait. I applied for the job I currently have (and didn’t get an interview for until July). I was sad when Memphis lost to Kansas in the NCAA Championship. I lost my car keys. I did the first truly irresponsible thing of my college career (since freshman year, anyway) and drove to Memphis two Tuesdays in a row to see two really good concerts for five dollars, quality time with two of my favorite sorority sisters, and the added advantage of free beer and good stories to tell the next day.
