More About Me Mondays
I was thinking about this today and I suddenly had the urge to Google the phrase (what's new, Google completes my life). Below is the list of characteristics on Wikipedia. I've highlighted those which apply to me right now as we speak.
- feeling "not good enough" because one can't find a job that is at one's academic/intellectual level
- frustration with relationships, the working world, and finding a suitable job or career
- confusion of identity
- insecurity regarding the near future
- insecurity concerning long-term plans, life goals
- insecurity regarding present accomplishments
- re-evaluation of close interpersonal relationships
- disappointment with one's job
- nostalgia for university, college, high school or elementary school life
- tendency to hold stronger opinions - I've always been opinionated so this doesn't apply
- boredom with social interactions
- loss of closeness to high school and college friends
- financially-rooted stress (overwhelming college loans, unanticipatedly high cost of living, etc.) - for me, I am buying a car after graduation and I want to purchase a home within a year
- loneliness
- desire to have children
- a sense that everyone is, somehow, doing better than you
When will I live abroad? Will I ever work abroad? Will I ever become fluent in French and Spanish? When will I have cute little babies? Will I get to stay home with them as long as I want to (about a year)? What kind of graduate degree will I get? When the heck will I have time to get a graduate degree? When will I open my non-profit? Will I ever gain the wealth I hope to gain in my lifetime? ...and the list goes on. and on. and on.
Every once in a while I have to remind myself that I have to take life one step at a time b/c there is only so much planning you can do.
I was talking to my homie today and we were talking about how school is not life and how she recognized several years ago. I, on the other hand, have just realized that b/c in my family education=life=education and there were no other interpretations. She told me that she came up with her own 10 commandments (i.e. #1 Thou shall prioritize). That has allowed her to keep things in perspective.
I've decided that creating my own commandments will be my first step to getting through this period of my life. I'll let you know when I've completed it. For now, I would like to share this Maya Angelou poem with you. I read it for the first time today. I love it and will be taping it to my wall tonight.
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE …
enough money within her control to move out
and rent a place of her own, even if she never wants to or needs to…
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE .
something perfect to wear if the employer, or date of her dreams wants to see her in an hour…
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE
a youth she’s content to leave behind….
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE .
a past juicy enough that she’s looking forward to
retelling it in her old age….
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ….
a set of screwdrivers, a cordless drill, and a black lace bra…
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE
one friend who always makes her laugh… and one who lets her cry…
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ..
a good piece of furniture not previously owned by anyone else in her family…
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE .
eight matching plates, wine glasses with stems, and a recipe for a meal, that will make her guests feel honored…
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE .
a feeling of control over her destiny.
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
how to fall in love without losing herself.
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
how to quit a job, break up with a lover, and confront a friend without; ruining the friendship…
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
when to try harder… and WHEN TO WALK AWAY…
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
that she can’t change the length of her calves,
the width of her hips, or the nature of her parents..
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
that her childhood may not have been perfect…but its over…
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
what she would and wouldn’t do for love or more…
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
how to live alone… even if she doesn’t like it…
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW..
whom she can trust,
whom she can’t,
and why she shouldn’t take it personally…
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
where to go…
be it to her best friend’s kitchen table…
or a charming inn in the woods…
when her soul needs soothing…
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW…
what she can and can’t accomplish in a day…
a month…and a year…
-Maya Angelou
