thinking makes it so…

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We spent last Friday  picking strawberries with a great group of families, and one woman said, “On days like these I think my husband got the raw end of this deal.”

She was, of course, correct. There are some days when screaming and tantrums and hitting and  illogic take place in the sun and fresh air, on which there are more cuddles than screams, more engaging interaction than battles. And then, yes, this job outshines others.

And there are days when fluorescent light and cubicles, steady pay and logical co-workers, and the chance to just think a thought through to completion and urinate when necessary, even when faced with terrible work conditions, lack of respect, a cruel boss, and crappy pay sound a whole lot better than this.

So I’ve been thinking of quitting. Or, rather, shifting careers. Before Peanut, when I worked in corporate America, I evaluated jobs with lists of pros and cons, and made decisions based on whether, in the balance a job offered more than it took from me.

So I took a deep breath and did the same evaluation about staying home to raise a child. Because it’s gotten challenging enough for me to spend more days in tears and screaming than not, and I am really, really talented at my previous, grownup jobs.

I think for my temperment, this job may not be a fit. I think I have too many conflicts with management, and I have too many skills that go unused in this role. But I also think that the boss needs me, the future of the company needs me, and the franchise will stand a better chance of making it in the long term if I keep my job.

So I’m starting each day with the attitude that I’m really lucky to be able to do this job. I may not be the best for the role, and this position may not be even close to what is best for me. I don’t even particularly like the job, though I love the company and believe in it. But the role will shift, the job will grow, and I will be able to say I made the right overall decision to stay instead of go, if only because in the balance, in the sun and fresh air of good days, this does beat shilling for multinational corporations, to whom I’m just a cog. Because to this tiny operation, I am the sun and the moon.

11 thoughts on “thinking makes it so…”

  1. Working for this non-profit has a rocky day-to-day, but from what I hear, the long-term benefits of the 403B make it all worth it.

  2. I am so with you here. Look in the mirror every morning and say out loud, “This is fun, dammit!”

    Truly, though, I used to think that waiting tables (and then teaching public school) was the hardest job in the universe. Ha! Now we know better.

    But God, those sticky, needy, demanding, “mommamommamomma” hands? So delicious. And yet, so torturous.

    Hmm , am I stuck in that William Carlos Williams poem about the plums? Because that’s kind of what mommyhood reminds me of.

  4. Nicely stated. And not an ounce of self-righteousness. This is complex stuff, huh? And yet so beautifully simple.

    ck, love, love, love that you referenced the plum poem. I love it!

  7. You *are* the sun and the moon in Peanut’s world…that’s such a lovely thought! But I understand the tensions and I think you’re amazing for being so thoughtful about them.

  9. Totally feel you. That’s how I try to wake even if it’s before six am. (Did you know there was a before six am?) Is it Pudding Day yet?

  10. I was just asking myself, “so HOW much am I getting paid for this?” and then I stopped myself from doing the math and then I read your blog and I thought, “well, okay. These 24 hour shifts aren’t THAT unethical.”

    • @ Claire Oh, I don’t know. They’re pretty unethical. Read 99% of my other posts and you’ll get a different picture. Especially the posts where I explain that 10 hours of this job is totally doable, if difficult, but the 5 or 6 or 14 hours after that are enough to drive Mother Theresa to corporal punishment.

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