Saying Goodbye
Last week was a week of lasts. The last time I would walk into my office at Penn State after working there for a decade. The last time I would drive the carpool. The last time I would fill out my timetracking report. And the last time I'd say "see you tomorrow" to some of my favorite people.
My team threw me a "Goodbye Kitty" party, an homage to my love of Hello Kitty. Almost everyone wore pink in my honor. These people don't need an excuse to party, but this was a pretty good one.
Why is it that in order to take on new challenges and grow personally, we need to give up things that we cherish and people we love?
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| My Favorite Creative Team |
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| Me and my Mentor |
Following my Heart
It seems insane to me to want to leave such an amazing group of people, yet I know that it is time. In fact, I've known for a couple of years that I needed to shake things up, but I was too comfortable to really do anything about it. When I started my sideline business a year ago, it helped tremendously, but I still found too many hours in my day where my soul wasn't invested.
With the help of some long conversations with my friend Stacy, I set my intentions for what I wanted to put into my work and what I wanted back out in return. I created a desk shrine, which I wrote about earlier, to remind me of those intentions: Creative, Spiritual, Joyful.
During this time of soul searching, I applied for a single job: the Director of Marketing at Saint Francis University, a small beautiful Franciscan university in Loretto, Pa. The institutions goals matched my personal goals. Six years ago my husband left politics to work there and calls it "life-changing."
Goals of Franciscan Higher EducationSo to make a long story short, I've finished the chapter on my Penn State career, and now I am writing a new chapter on my days at Saint Francis University. To all of you who supported me along the way, please know that I am carrying a piece of you with me in my heart.
* A humble and generous attitude toward learning
* Reverence for all life and for the goodness of all humanity
* A global vision
* Service to the poor and needy
* Respect for the uniqueness of individual persons
* A community of faith and prayer
* The spirit of simplicity and joy
* Franciscan presence
So completely proud of you and excited for you! We'll miss you, but there are few greater joys in life than seeing someone you care about spread their wings and fly.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations, Marie!! Sad but happy at the same time.
ReplyDeleteWonderful! You are young and smart and change can only be good, no matter the outcome. Growth is exciting, scary and yes, painful. But it far outweighs getting stagnant. Congratulations on your moving out of your comfort zone!
ReplyDeleteYou are so, so missed. I haven't gone on a walk yet. If I got to pot, I'm blaming you :-)
ReplyDeleteI am so happy for you and you deserve every wonderful thing that happens to you. You have been such an inspiration and I send you all the best blessing on your new journey.
And in case you were worried, we have not slacked off on the parties. We're keeping a pretty good pace with that one. It is the holidays after all :-)