Emma Byers, alumna (class of ’11), Denver, CO
Hello, everyone! I’m so pleased with how much posting has increased recently and I thought I’d be a bit of a hypocrite if I didn’t post something as well, so here come some thoughts in no particular order…
1. Being unemployed was harder than I expected. After being essentially perpetually occupied for the past 22+ years, finding myself suddenly so directionless was a major challenge. I felt restless and bored spending my days applying for countless jobs and hearing nothing back. So for anyone that is still in this position or will be in this position anytime soon, all I can say is: stick it out! The right job will come along, no matter how hopeless the search feels. After three months of searching and not doing much else, I landed a fantastic job and I am so happy.
2. Staying in touch with people from Puget Sound made the waiting game bearable. Knowing that I was not alone in my transitionary funk helped a lot. Even when friends weren’t moving on to the same things as me, we could commiserate and that has made so much difference.
3. I now belong on an episode of “Kids Say the Darndest Things”. I am working in an elementary special education classroom for kids with emotional and behavioral disorders. The kids are all totally quirky and it’s fun to hear what they come up with. According to one little boy with Asperger’s as we talked about 9/11 today: “There’s a difference between terrorists and extremists…” He’s six. And when asked what they wanted to be when they grew up, one little girl replied “A castle.” You never know what is going to come out of their mouths. I love the teacher and the other para that I’m working with–both have great senses of humor and admirable amounts of patience.
4. The GRE’s are hard. I took them last weekend and they were just as much of a time and energy suck as I heard they would be. My advice? Get them out of the way sooner rather than later… if you’re like me, you’ll feel an enormous weight lift when you do.
5. I miss you all an unbelievable amount. I didn’t think it was possible to yearn for a place as much as I do for Puget Sound and Tacoma, but I find myself counting the days until I can return again. I know that wherever my travels take me, I’m going to end up back in the Pacific Northwest eventually. It’s in my bones.