It’s Been A Minute

Photo by Ekaterina Belinskaya on Pexels.com

Hey, long time, no post.

2024 was a crazy year for my family. I posted this on the site’s Facebook page, but last spring I decided to take a brief (ha! what a fool!) hiatus from writing and blogging to focus on some online classes I was taking to help level-up my career. After my son was born, I quickly realized that while my family was comfortable in the short term, if I wanted our family to remain stable financially through the rising costs of the coming decades, I needed to grow beyond my dead-end role. My plan at the time was to hit the books hard and find a better-paying job, either with my company at the time or another. And I’m happy to report today that this plan worked out… mostly.

I lost my job in July. While I wasn’t sad to see it go, I was more than a little frustrated about the way it went down – so much so that I went to therapy to unpack my anger, which was no small step for me. I have never thought ill of therapy, and but I always also saw it as a tool for other people, with ‘real problems.’ Having set that bias aside, I now cannot recommend it enough. Even for the simple catharsis of having another human being who isn’t related to you listen and acknowledge that what you went through sucked is worth it. I won’t burden you with the tedious and all-too-unremarkable details, but suffice it to say that this fall was a difficult season both emotionally and financially. Navigating unemployment, applying to 10-20 jobs a day, hitting the books hard, and building an online portfolio or work left me with very little mental or emotional energy to give toward the creative projects I love, this little blog included.

Nevertheless, stories continued to live in the back of my thoughts, waving from the next hill over.

This ^ is how I know in my heart I’m a writer, even if I never publish anything meaningful in a market most people would respect or recognize. The stories live with me even when life pushes them to the margins. Maybe you have something like that in your life. I hope you do. Take heart. Be patient. You will find the time again, one day.

Things worked out well on the career front. Better than well, actually. After a 4-month search, I landed a job in the exact field I was training for with a supportive, encouraging culture doing challenging and engaging work. I learn something new every day. The move was decisively a net positive, despite the deep valley it took to get here.

So, Maslow’s Lower Tiers taken care of, I feel the persistent itch to get back to creative things, and that includes this space. So if you’ve been subscribed for years or you just stumbled across this page today, thank you. Thank you for your time, and your patience. Thank you for reading. Watch this space next week for an extra-log whirlwind tour of my top reads of 2024.

Which of these will make the cut?