A student of mine from last summer emailed me, asking for any pointers on facilitating a discussion group. I was flattered that he remembered me, much less having asked me for advice. The short exchange took me back to a year ago, when I was prepping to apply for grad school. I was so needlessly stressed. Scrambling at the last minute for letters of recommendation, rearranging the commas and prepositions on my personal statements, forking over hundreds of dollars in application fees, and taking the much-dreaded GRE. All for this coming fall. Let’s hope that it was all worth it. My biggest fear is that social welfare is not what I really wanted to pursue, after all. And then I’d have to do it all over again. I guess I’ll find out in a couple of months. The past year of idleness made me realize more than ever that I NEED to pursue this. I can do more than work a dead-end job that will land me no satisfaction but more and more resentment by the end of each day.
The thought of research and study excites me.
Speaking of which, I have enrolled in my fall quarter classes: Human Development, Community Theory, Social Welfare Policy, Theory of Social Welfare with Individuals, Groups, Families. In addition to being in school twice a day from 8-5, I have an internship every other day from 8-5. Busy. I don’t find out where I get placed until mid-September.
Now I’m stressing over having to move, getting acclimated to a new environment, and being away from Theo for more than days at a time. I got over my hurdles last year, and suffice it to say, I’ll get over these in time.
