Everyone has been asking me...

...did you get a job for the fall?

No. And honestly, I haven't been looking. Because I want so desperately to be a speech-language pathologist. Should I be looking for jobs just in case? Probably.

I am talented. I am able. I am valuable. These are things I have to remind myself when I get to that place in my head that says, You aren't doing anything. You haven't started a career yet. But here's the thing: I'm happy. I'm excited that I found my true calling. I have great friends and family, many of whom have great things happening to them right now, too. What else can I really ask for?

August

The day camp is over. We had a great run. I'll miss the campers and being able to swim in a nice pool every day. But I'm ready for the school year to start, and to get back to work as a sub.

I was asked to babysit one of the campers for the next three weeks. It's a good gig; four days a week hanging out with a fun, intelligent 5-year-old. She has been at camp all summer, so I've gotten to know her pretty well. Also, mom and grandma said we could take trips to the waterpark and what not, so that should be fun.

This weekend was the deadline for graduate applications for Eastern Michigan's Speech-Language Pathology program. I had all of my paperwork in by last Tuesday. Go me! I'm hoping that the admissions committee in the department can see my potential and give me a shot. I desperately want this.

I've also been doing some spiritual work on myself. I've been seeking ways that I can improve my outlook on life and my relationships to people. It never hurts to put an effort towards self-improvement, and I have been in kind of a rut this last year. I'm ready to get myself back out there again, into the community, doing productive and creative things with my time.

We just finished our fourth week of day camp, which means that this job is halfway done for me. It's been nice to have a full time job for the summer, and the managers at Bob Evans have been kind enough to let me work every other Sunday, to avoid burnout, and letting me pick up extra shifts here and there.

The work setting of the day camp job is interesting. My boss, the camp director, is also a future teacher. He is doing his student teaching in the fall, so it's been great experience for him because he's learning how to manage elementary-aged kids. He was having doubts about the job in the beginning, which was actually a challenge for me because I have a tendency to want to control every situation that I'm a part of. But I decided to step back and just give him only the suggestions that I knew could greatly benefit his experience, while I just do the best job that I can as a counselor.

I'm glad I chose to work at the camp this summer. I'm staying in touch with young people, and I get to enjoy learning about kids in a non-school setting. Plus, it's 40 hours a week, with weekends off, and I get a free lunch and snack!

Happiness

Things that have made me happy lately:

-Daisy, of course. How have I gone so long without a dog?

-"So You Think You Can Dance" - This show is very American Idol-like, but the amount of passion that these dancers have inspires me to want to feel that way about something.

-long emails from old friends

-good books. I just finished The Road by Cormac McCarthy (heavy, but outstanding). Now I'm onto a lighter memoir called Tender at the Bone.

-watching Darin work. He is steadfast and diligent towards achieving his goals. I look up to him.

-anticipation of promising events to come.

It's the end of the school year, and I have to admit that I've been very blessed this year. I have been able to be an active part of 9 students' school year. It wasn't every day, but it was regular enough that they know me and trust me. Not every substitute can say they were able to watch students grow this past year. I am thankful for that.

Darin is working diligently to get his accounting degree finished. He is getting outstanding grades and keeping his priorities straight, studying every night and staying on task with all of the reading assignments and homework. I really look up to him. He is so driven to achieve this goal.

There has been lots to do, and the summer camp job is starting in two weeks! It's going to be a nice break to go from managing classwork to just making sure the kids are having plain old fun. I get to wear shorts and a t-shirt, and play with kids at a country club all day. (The country club setting is new for me, but, hey, they have tennis!)

The graduate school applications are underway as well. I've secured one letter of recommendation, but I'm shy about asking professors from two years ago to write my one. I'll get up the guts by the end of this week, I hope. Other than that, my GRE scores and my GPA are above the average of those admitted to the program. So I think I have a pretty good shot. We'll see if it grad school is in the plan for me. Wish me luck!