Thursday, June 23, 2011

Replacement Found!

We finally found our replacement.  I feel like a tremendous weight has been lifted off my shoulders!  Now I can  return to my long to-do list without feeling this nagging anxiety that my agency will not have anyone to pick up where I left off.

It has been an interesting experience, to say the least.  At 24, I already felt a huge gap between me and the fresh graduates who turned down the offer with the phrase, "It's not a good fit for me."  Like me, many of them were able to spend their time volunteering and signing up for internships while living off their parents and thus, do not have a good grasp of Life yet.  The economic downturn that started before my graduation and this past year of making ends meet with my meager AmeriCorps paycheck has taught me never to turn down opportunity, especially if it coincides with the possibility of professional development.  Many of my co-workers, who are my age and understand the difficulties of making a living, echoed the same sentiments.  But I learned to acknowledge that some people have very specific goals for their health career that do not coincide with the job description and I realize that fresh graduates tend to have a lot of optimism that may or may not pay off later.  Maybe it's just my cynicism talking and I'm still feeling bitter about the anxiety my supervisor and I endured during the past two weeks.

I AM glad that my AmeriCorps position is going towards an individual who has worked hard to fund her own needs, from bills to her own education.  I'm also glad that because of her own background, she understands first hand the difficult lives of the people my agency serves.  Maybe it was meant to be.  Maybe she just needed someone to give her a chance so she can do something great that will amaze everyone.  I hope so.

2 comments:

  1. Glad to hear that things worked out and you have someone in place to continue your work.

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  2. thanks! I was planning to continue volunteering as much as time and gas money will allow (it's an hour and 20 min away+toll). It's a relief to be able to go back to thinking about what I can do in a day to help out, as opposed to what I have to finish in a day to meet report deadlines.

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