So this morning I’m coming to you from my dorm room at the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg, MD, roughly 75 miles and 2.5 hours in rush-hour traffic from our nation’s capital, here to attend a two-day meeting that I’ll spare you the details of (you’re welcome). I’m one week and one day into my new gig and I’m definitely in over my head. Why hit the ground running when you can hit it stumble-sprinting? I’ll catch my breath eventually, and remain confident I’m in the right place, but for now I am firmly in “fake it ’til you make it” land.
If you haven’t changed jobs recently—and especially so after a prolonged stretch of downtime—you might think I’m exaggerating when I say it’s more physically and mentally exhausting than I could have imagined. All of last week I was drinking coffee until 6pm and then face planting on the couch at 8:30pm in an ugly full-drool situation…and then sleeping through the night. Once I finally dragged my ass up to bed.
So needless to say life has been one big transformation lately. A new routine, new people, new brain regions activated…claiming my space, finding my balance, trying to do a good job, not losing sight of the things that matter most.
It’s been an interesting six days. I’ll give it that.
But when I’m in a place like this, doing the work I’ve been hired to do, I always find a certain peace. I’m grateful to be doing work with purpose. And I am reminded of the complex infrastructure that keeps us safe, one that many of us take for granted. So overall, I’m happy and grateful to be here. And not just because they served coconut soft-serve frozen yogurt in the dining hall last night.
This will give you a flavor of it:
It’s pretty pretty, right? It’s also surrounded by rolling hills on all sides. Absolutely gorgeous. Not to mention steeped in history and tradition…so there’s a certain solemnity…austerity…gravitas to it. You can’t not take your work seriously at a place like this. Let’s face it—HazMat is serious business.
And as I start a new job as the latest presidential campaign heats up, the notion of term limits gets me thinking whether there should there be term limits on most (all) jobs to force us to do some outside-of-the-comfort-zone brain sharpening. I mean the more we do the same thing, we develop expertise, but we lose perspective and insight. When we do what we think we know, we actually don’t think as much. Routine. Repetition. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.
Of course as different as everything is, getting through the airport and to my destination hasn’t changed a bit. Clueless people are everywhere, but they are concentrated at the airport. And it always baffles me how many people seem like they’ve never flown before. As I said, clueless.
When I leave here Wednesday evening I drive back to DC and will spend the weekend for my niece’s college graduation festivities with my sis and her family, Kerri, and mom, who fly in Thursday. My niece is graduating from the Conway School of Nursing at Catholic University, and I’m so proud of her. I just got notification on Shutterfly of memories from 14 years ago—her First Communion. Now this. Add on that this past Sunday we toasted my Dad on what would have been his 82nd birthday (sadly he’s forever 73)…the time just goes by…so I guess all I have to say is this: pay attention to it. Enjoy it. I’m already getting emotional thinking about her pinning ceremony…with my mom in attendance…exactly 60 years after she was pinned as a nurse. Those full-circle moments really get me.
Yesterday was a long day and I have to haul across the campus to get to the dining hall before the meeting starts. So I need to keep it short…and I need to re-learn how to integrate my writing with my professional schedule and personal commitments. The bottom line remains the same: I appreciate you being here, and I love our time together.
Love you too.
You can put me in the clueless category. Yesterday I had a 5:30 am flight after a pretty sleepless night, and I forgot that I had to gate check my back because I am flying steerage now, and I actually took someone else's bag from the overhead storage bin and started walking off the plane with it! The guy was like wft grey haired old lady!
So proud that you are doing this very important work. Happy Graduation Annie!
Nicole, Excellent, best of luck in your new opportunity. Enjoy the trip and the weekend. Congratulations to your niece as well.