A look around…

I like to think about life. When I was in college, I dreamt of a paycheck larger than $100. I thought about how nice it would be to have a job, zero studying and just lay back at home after work. 

At the time, school was all I knew. If I was sick, it was OK to miss a day. If I didn’t feel like going to Calculus that day, I had a friend who would give me notes (I did the same for him). Things were so different then. It was a shock when I threw myself into the real world.

I remember my first few weeks on the job. Everyone, to me, was Mr. this and Miss that. They were, after all, my mentors into the real world. I was used to showing people older than me some respect with the prefixes. However, that got fixed pretty quickly when a big boss told me it makes me sound like a child. I didn’t want to be known as the young one, so I started to call people my parents’ age/grandparents’ age by their first name now. It was so weird, but I learned and caught on quickly. Now, people of that age see me as a colleague. Even weirder.

Now that I’ve been in the real world  for over 3 years, I think ahead to what life will be like professionally. Will I ever be trusted to lead a team? What will my salary be? What will I know now that I didn’t know today? It’s hard to just sit there and do the same old, same old everyday without wondering where I am headed.

Marriage wise, I’m always thinking about the future. Will my husband still find me pretty? Will we still have our date nights? Will I be a good mother? Will I be able to handle a monster blow-out in the middle of Bath & Body Works? How much sleep will I get?

I know l will adjust in the future. Will it be a struggle for a while? Of course. Will I miss today? I’m sure of it. Will there be surprises along the way? Definitely.

Oh yes, surprises. Surprises are a different ball game. Adjusting to the unexpected…welcoming some new twists. Never in a million years did I think I would be taking pictures of food that I cooked and people would CARE about them. Now, my kitchen is my therapy. I play music and make up lyrics to songs I don’t know while onions sweat it out in a pan. I dance around while pounding down bread dough. Me? Sewing? That’s something I didn’t expect to be able to do. I’m no longer cussing at my rotary cutter or finding myself too lazy to change a thread color because I’m afraid the machine won’t work after. I’m making things when I want something, rather than going to a store and buying it. I’m thinking up crafts for gifts and finding constant inspiration in fabric shops. Never thought that would be me. Nah-uh. I didn’t think I’d be able to grow a garden. I used to be that kid who would throw temper tantrums in the middle of the Garden Center of Home Depot. I didn’t care about plants…didn’t want to. Sucky thing was, Mom is a horticulturist and Dad, well, he’s a hobbyist in veggie gardening. Garden Centers were their haven. Now look at me. I email my Mom or Dad when my garden wilts or when I see a funny bug. They think I’m weird now.

I guess a good look around at my life is bound to happen. With paths that I thought I would once encounter closing and new ones always opening, it’s hard not to. Life is really truly what Forrest Gump says it is, but I love it!