So long...

...since I posted.

The last week has been interesting. I have a lot to talk about now though.

I was laid off last Tuesday. After 17 months of exemplary service for a mismanaged company they laid me off. Lovely, I know. As one attorney I talked to said, "As far as I am aware, we haven't outlawed stupidity." Basically.

So, I am taking this time to re-evaluate my direction in life. After being in a job where I never had the opportunity to do what I was originally hired to do, I am wary of the job market. In the initial stages of the layoff I talked with my dad and he basically reminded me that there were three key pieces to my employment anywhere and that in the end, 2 of the 3 had been violated.

#1 Follow you passion. (What I was hired to do could have been my passion, but I wasn't given the opportunity to do it and I settled for something much less...)

#2 Never compromise your ethics. Integrity is who you are when nobody is looking. (This one is the one I suceeded in.)

#3 Never work for someone you don't respect. (I had long had concerns about the management and practices of my former company.)

All of that said, it still hurts. I am an "all or nothing" kind of girl. I believe in work as a vocation, not simply a job or a career. I gave a lot of my heart to the job I did. I gave a lot of attention and talent to the positions I held. And not only was I laid off for it, but I was betrayed by the people who led my team.

That said, I refuse to take up a jaded view of my next position. I will go in with all of my heart and give them everything I have to give. I don't live to work, I work to live, but Catholic teaching is clear about the subjective nature of work. It doesn't say treat others the way they treat you. It doesn't say take what you can and run. It says to treat others as you would like to be treated. Sure, ideally, the subjectivity of work is intended to be a developing relationship which is a joint effort between employer and employee. Many employers don't live up to these intentions, but that shouldn't discourage me from trying to live up to them.

I REFUSE to let one mismanaged, misguided, company destroy my view or ascription to Catholic Social Teaching. Catholic Social Teaching is the practical applications of Catholic scripture and doctrine. It may be hard to come by, and my hopeful belief in it may be seen by some as naive and impractical. I believe the phrase "golden girl" has been thrown in my direction a time or two. I don't care. I will always believe that it can exist. I will always hold it up as the only standard I strive towards. Anything less is an insult to the dignity of the human person and the body that is the Church.

Moreover, my last job taught me many things, but more importantly, it brought me many wonderful relationships. I am so glad that I never let an opportunity pass to share fellowship with a co-worker. I walked away with my head held high and several invaluable relationships. The girl in the picture is one of my greatest blessings from my time at the company. She is a talented woman and strong witness to the power of faith. (And she makes me laugh...a lot!)

Sure, I am scared. I feel somewhat helpless. The bills have to be paid. The cats have to be fed. That said, God will provide. He always has. I am so much better for what He has given me in the past 17 months than I ever could have dreamed. No company will ever change that.

Not to mention that if I hadn't taken my former position, I wouldn't have met my fiance...take that former company.