"A life is actively, consciously chosen and pursued, rather than passively accepted." -The Unlost
I have always felt that out of my family, I was going to be the one to take another direction, the one to take the big risk. I felt that the big blank that I've drawn when it comes to my future and my career, although scary, is not a bleak outlook, but a blank canvas.
However, tonight my father was in town for work and we invited him over for dinner. After dinner, I mentioned that my Alumnae Council presidency was starting this summer. He asked, "What are you getting out of it?".
I thought he was joking. He wasn't. What I took for sarcasm was in fact, disdain.
Why are you wasting your time? Why bother? Why do you even care?
I usually take my family interactions with a grain of salt and a shot of tequila, but this was below the belt.
My time spent volunteering for St. Margaret's has been fulfilling and exciting. I've met and worked with some amazing, remarkable women. I've gotten some great advice, made worthwhile connections, and helped the school that was responsible for helping me. Maybe my father doesn't give the school enough credit. Or maybe it's me he doesn't give enough credit to.
With my dad, it almost seems like he doesn't do anything that doesn't have some direct benefit. Why work for a small company, when you can work for the government with a bunch of inadequate people and get paid more? Why do more work when you don't have to? There must be an equal exchange.
I thought about this and the idea of being left empty-handed. We go through life accumulating things, but we also accumulate experiences. Experiences have no monetary value, but leave us wise and enriched. Is that considered nothing? If I dedicated my whole life to a cause that didn't pay me, would I be empty-handed?
Maybe it's a sign of my generation. Using your talents for a cause that not only benefits others, but teaches you. If I set up my Alumnae Council presidency as a type of "internship/learning experience", would that be more legit? I'm 27 years old. Do I really have to justify my good decisions, as well as my bad ones, to anybody at this point?
To cap things off, even though being president of this Alumnae Council is a voluntary position, I still take it as a second job. I use my marketing background to communicate to alums. I ask for their donations. I create events and opportunities that not only bring people together, but also directly benefit the school and its mission. I've helped raise Annual Fund percentages and get people more interested in giving their own time and money. This has been and will be an amazing opportunity that I will make me and my career better.
I most certainly am not empty-handed.
I thought he was joking. He wasn't. What I took for sarcasm was in fact, disdain.
Why are you wasting your time? Why bother? Why do you even care?
I usually take my family interactions with a grain of salt and a shot of tequila, but this was below the belt.
My time spent volunteering for St. Margaret's has been fulfilling and exciting. I've met and worked with some amazing, remarkable women. I've gotten some great advice, made worthwhile connections, and helped the school that was responsible for helping me. Maybe my father doesn't give the school enough credit. Or maybe it's me he doesn't give enough credit to. With my dad, it almost seems like he doesn't do anything that doesn't have some direct benefit. Why work for a small company, when you can work for the government with a bunch of inadequate people and get paid more? Why do more work when you don't have to? There must be an equal exchange.
I thought about this and the idea of being left empty-handed. We go through life accumulating things, but we also accumulate experiences. Experiences have no monetary value, but leave us wise and enriched. Is that considered nothing? If I dedicated my whole life to a cause that didn't pay me, would I be empty-handed?
Maybe it's a sign of my generation. Using your talents for a cause that not only benefits others, but teaches you. If I set up my Alumnae Council presidency as a type of "internship/learning experience", would that be more legit? I'm 27 years old. Do I really have to justify my good decisions, as well as my bad ones, to anybody at this point?
To cap things off, even though being president of this Alumnae Council is a voluntary position, I still take it as a second job. I use my marketing background to communicate to alums. I ask for their donations. I create events and opportunities that not only bring people together, but also directly benefit the school and its mission. I've helped raise Annual Fund percentages and get people more interested in giving their own time and money. This has been and will be an amazing opportunity that I will make me and my career better.
I most certainly am not empty-handed.
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