Endings and New Beginnings

Today marks the end of my tenure at Calvin, and the end of full-time work for me. Starting Monday I'll be a SAHM (I really feel like a "mommy blogger" when I use abbreviations like that). I have seriously mixed feelings about leaving. When Calvin first became a part of my world I was eighteen years old and about to begin four years that would change how I thought about almost everything from my faith to relationships to what I was supposed to do with the rest of my life! I also learned practical things like how to be a better communicator, improve my reading and writing skills, and all the things that a solid liberal arts education is supposed to teach you. When I came back to work for Calvin, friends in my graduate program cautioned me that working for the institution you went to school at can be tricky - sometimes you are disillusioned as a student and can't see the problems and pitfalls of a school. There were, on occasion, times that I was completely and utterly frustrated by institutional policies and departmental protocols. By and large though, I came to love Calvin even more and have a deep respect for the school and for those with whom I have worked. I'll miss the work that I do and my colleagues with an equal passion.

It will be strange to be at home on Monday morning with no plans, no one to talk to except a smiley little baby girl who says only one word (and it's questionable whether her "da da" babbling can even be considered a word at this point)! I know it will be an adjustment, and I know that I'll keep looking for part-time work to help me achieve the balance that I need in my life. In the meantime, I will try to be content in the knowledge that I am spending precious days with my daughter that I will never be able to get back (as much as I may want to once she becomes a teenager). And, who knows, maybe with our extra time together I can work on her arsenal of words and someday soon can wake up to cries of "ma ma". That will, by the way, definitely be considered a word - the most precious one I'll ever hear.