Well we have definitely had our share of ups and downs already this year...
This New Years, James's resolution was to step it up at work & attempt to be compensated for the time and work he puts into his job on a daily basis.... despite the economic recession. I'm not just saying this because I'm his wife, but James truly is, the hardest worker I've ever known. But, lucky for me, he's not a workaholic. Let me point out the difference.... James has his priorities in check. He works anywhere between 9-13 hour days (not to mention he'll be doing inventory in Marble Falls for probably near 17+ hours), tries to get as much stuff done as he can while helping others out, but when it's time to come home, he doesn't come home and complain or talk about work, he is ready to help with dinner or anything I'm doing so we can spend time together. Basically he's putting his time in now, so when we have kids he can make it to soccer practice and dance recitals or whatever.... but no matter what, I know work will always come after family for him.
So back to what I was saying, his goal was to get more for his work, so that we can start moving on with our life, (i.e. get a house, starting really thinking about having kids, etc.) and his first day back, he was told about a possible job opportunity in the works. It would mean more money, we would get to stay here, get a new car, but, it would require a lot of travel. James and I haven't spent more than one night away from each other since we've been married, so that was going to take some getting used to, to say the least. In fact, when we first heard about it, he took me out to dinner, asked me what I thought about it, what I was worried about, etc. and of course... I bawled, in public. 8 balls of tissues worth to be exact but all in all, we decided we both needed to make sacrifices in order to have the life we want for our future. Well, after making this decision & waiting almost a month, only to hear he didn't get the job, we were pretty frustrated & upset. They said the reasoning was because they found a young guy that grew up an Army kid & had no attachments to anyone, so he was a better fit.
This is even after last years' Lubbock fiasco where James was flown out to Lubbock to meet and greet for a possible Operations Manager position, was told "No thank you" after deciding we were willing to move, only to be asked 6 months later if he would be willing to come back and take the job... to which he hastily declined... And I give him props for.
Soooo... here we are... trying to support each other in any way we can, telling ourselves that everything happens for a reason & that there has to be something bigger and better out there. I mean, the decision not to take the Lubbock job was a no brainer & it's true, if he got this most recent job, I think I'd be a lump of coal with James being away that long. I guess sometimes, when things are put in your lap and snatched right out from under you, it's to help you appreciate the things you have... and for me, it's a lot.
Lots of people say they're in love & talk about how wonderful their significant other is, but I really think I got the cream of the crop. James is the best part of my life and my main goal has become to show him how great he really is. He doesn't keep score, hold grudges, pick fights or play games... he is just kind hearted and willing to do whatever he needs to do to put a smile on my face... or anyone's for that matter.
Either way, whether the third time is a charm or not, I'm happy to know that no matter what our financial situation, we'll be able to make it work.
ANYWAYS, on a side note... The semester has already begun and I'm on my way to becoming a teacher. I'm already learning a lot and can't wait to start observing and getting involved in the classroom. One of the first days of my "Intro to Teaching" class, we got construction paper and crayons and drew our "life maps" & it was really an eye opening experience to understand how incredibly different people really are. I mean, you pass by hundreds of thousands of people a day & they're just faces... but if you were to sit down with one of them and ask them their life story, not only would you find out a lot more about them, but you might even make a friend.... find out what makes them tick, what they're afraid of, who they love & why... I found it really interesting.
Normally, in class you just get up and say your name and where you're from... but this really dove deep under the surface. People were talking about their near death experiences, their family members, disabilities, insecurities, challenges... one girl brought her sonogram to tell us she recently found out she was pregnant, while another talked about a discovered aneurysm in her mother's brain that could erupt and kill her at any moment really... I mean, these things that go over looked by people all the time. These are the things that make people who they are, say the things they do ... good or bad.
Everyone is a little piece of every person they've ever met.
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