July 05, 2006

Dear Friends,

You have been asking me all year long, “What are you doing in September?” The fact is, I honestly don’t know. I applied to grad school last fall, I got into the masters of linguistics program at the University of Edinburgh, then I never accepted because too many things are swirling around. For one thing I can’t afford Edinburgh but now I’m hoping to go there next year, once I figure out how to get through the loop holes. Taking a year off is very unlike me, I’m not sure how I’ll make out, but I think God is leading me to where he wants me to be. I have to trust.

Since I’m not going to grad school this year (*tear*) I’ve been trying to find out what I am supposed to be doing. I’ve been unofficially offered a longer contract here at the office that I work at, since I’m awesome – or more likely because they’re understaffed in this department and now that I’m trained I’m useful. But, as per a previous post, I don’t think I’d be able to handle that. Office work is not my forté and I might just have to jump off the roof. It would be nice to make money for a longer period of time, but money is just money, it comes and goes.

So, supplemental plans are ongoing. I applied to Wycliffe Bible Translators. I don’t actually want to translate Bible’s, but I do want to do over seas missions and relief work as well as linguistics. I thought it would be a fair intersection to get me going. I’ve also applied to the World Food Programme, which is part of the UN. Their head office is in Rome and they have people out on the field around the world – wherever there are hungry people. I need to be serving the poor and destitute, it is part of my calling if not all of it.

My mom has been recently telling me to be a teacher, she says I would be good at it. But I’m not sure. A friend of mine in high school made me promise never to become a teacher because she said I couldn’t bring myself down to the level of the student. I never had problems with high school math, I would probably not be able to see why a student couldn’t get a concept. But maybe teaching English on the other side of the world is what it should be, I just don’t want to get caught up in a really sketchy situation, you never really know what organizations you can trust.

My best friend wants me to find a job in Vancouver so we can share a place there, and our backup plan is to move to New Zealand and live with her friends there, since there are apparently a lot of jobs to be had. I’ve always wanted to go to New Zealand, I even contemplated doing grad school there. But they’re crazy and in the Southern hemisphere so the school year actually starts in February. In the back of my mind there’s always the, “Maybe I’ll just move to Europe.” I think that would be cool, if I could find a decent job then I could go to Paris on the weekends and stuff, do Europe.

Whatever happens I’m sure it will turn out all right, but I have lots of freak out episodes. When you’re entire life is up in the air it can be a little disconcerting. At least its up in the air in a positive, option filled way. But the thing with options is not only do you have to choose one, you have to find out what they all are.

Ok. Well there’s my life, since everyone wants to know.

1 comment:

Lila Cheimak said...

ahem... you have yet to post today. i am waiting. hahaha. ;) (yes no life, i know)... it's the little joys beth, ok? ok.