Monday, May 9, 2011

Changes

It's never too late - in fiction or in life - to revise.~Nancy Thayer~
 
As is often quoted the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results.  I think in our home we have reached the end of our insanity.  For the past several years we have pretty much been sitting around doing the same thing and waiting for things to look up.  Waiting for the economy to improve, for clients to call.  Waiting for stability in our career and financial life.  On the one hand we have done many new things in an effort to achieve our goals but on the other hand we have been trying to do it within the same structure.

Life is always at some turning point.~Irwin Edman

For the past couple months we have been discussing how we can once again rearrange the pieces of our life in hopes of creating the stability we are in search of.  Many ideas, all with merit, have been bantered around.  All would affect the structure of our life as it sits today but it was unclear if any of them would really bring us what we really needed.

Readjusting is a painful process, but most of us need it at one time or another.~Arthur Christopher Benson~

Finally after much discussion and prayer it has become clear that no matter what path John's career takes it will require some education.  Early in our marriage John was in trade-school full time and I worked full time.  We lived in a little 1 bedroom apartment, shared 1 car, had no children, little expenses and no expectations for our lives.  We went from being broke and having nothing to being more broke and still having nothing, yet with a possible future.  Today we have a mortgage, 2 kids, 5 vehicles, many expenses and lots of expectations for our lives.  Yet in some ways we are in the same place, preparing to sacrifice for the possibility of a future we can no longer see on our current path.

If nothing ever changed, there'd be no butterflies. ~Author Unknown

So with lots of unknowns and details still to be worked out we are looking forward to some very big changes at our house.  Because John opted for the diploma track rather than the associate degree track while in trade school (a decision we have only regretted about a million times in the past 17 years) he is basically starting from square one.  We briefly talked about him pursuing some additional training that would augment his trade schooling giving him more options within his current field but we feel strongly that it is time for us to leave the building industry all together.  And while he could possibly get some training to transfer his existing knowledge into another industry we are feeling a calling to something altogether different.

Change always comes bearing gifts. ~Price Pritchett

About 14 years ago on something of a whim John applied for a paid-on-call position with our local fire department.  The only little boy in the world who did not dream of being a fire fighter when he grew up fell in love with firefighting.  But what we learned is that in today's world fire fighters spend more time on medical calls than they do actually fighting a blaze.  So he was certified first responder initially and then went on to become an EMT.  With this training he has had opportunities to work as the medical person for various sporting events and actually gets excited when someone gets hurt.  He loves helping people and has loved the medical training he has gotten.  And why shouldn't he?  His sister is an RN and his parents are both EMT equivalents and taught at the local community college many of the emergency responders around the twin cities.  It is in his blood.

They must often change, who would be constant in happiness or wisdom. ~Confucius
 
So as of this moment the plan is for him to pursue a medical degree.  As we get to know the industry and get a feel for what John is most passionate about the specifics are sure to come into view but for now the intention is for him to become a Physician's Assistant.
 
We all have big changes in our lives that are more or less a second chance. ~Harrison Ford

At 40 years old this seems like a daunting task.  We did decide we were too old for him to become a doctor but feel like we can commit 6 years of our lives getting into position to work for another 20+ years.  As we talked about how hard it is going to be, full time school with likely both of us full time working, I looked back on our life this past year.  He was out plowing all night long only to head to whatever job he had that week with only a couple hours of sleep.  Isn't that hard?  And that schedule isn't getting us anywhere.  This can't be harder than that and it will be getting us somewhere.

Our only security is our ability to change. ~John Lilly

Anyone who knows us knows that we have lots of good ideas.  We get excited about them, talk a lot about them, do a little research on them and then move on to the next good idea.  We are a wealth of good ideas that never were. "Let's open a green hardware store!"  "We should raise Chickens in our backyard!"  But we also follow through on some of our ideas.  We did go to Africa, we did start a construction business and a plow business, we did adopt a child, we did buy rental property, we did send John to school the first time.  Those all started out as crazy, life changing ideas too.  So while I don't have all the details worked out quite yet on how this life changing idea will play out I am excited to see how God continues to lead us.

There's nothing permanent with us except God & His Love & the Family!--Nothing has to be permanent except the Lord!--Only He changes not. (Mal.3:6.)


"Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.  Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect."  Romans 12:2 (NLT)

4 comments:

  1. Wow, this is huge! How exciting! It truly is never too late to pursue something that excites you though :)

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  2. I have always admired you and John for the way you embrace change. I am one of those odd balls that likes change (although sometimes I regret every telling God that!), and God seems to have wired me and Richard that way, just as he has you and John. One definately learns alot through change, and learns to trust in God. I'll be praying for you as you go on this exciting ride called life with God!!

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  3. Wow, I remember those days when you and John first started out. You've accomplished so much since then. I'm kind of in the same boat that John's in. My 30 year anniversary with Wells Fargo is coming up next month. I'll be getting laid off sometime in October and my prospects for finding another job within the company aren't looking very promising. I've been thinking about pursuing a whole new career path myself but I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up (ha,ha!) I too kick myself every single day for not going to college when I was younger. Thanks for sharing this part of your lives with us. It gives me hope that there's something better out there for me too! I'll be keeping your family in my prayers as you make this transition!

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  4. Wow, I'm excited to read about your news and the ways God is leading your family. I admire you all so much! Thank you for living such lives of authentic faith-in-action.

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