Early Thanksgiving Reflection

Hello Everyone:

It's the day before, the day before Thanksgiving Day and the time of the year when serious reflection comes to the forefront of everyone conscious.  Myself included, the last several weeks of the year are a time when I think about all the people and events that have past through my life.  This past year has been about transitions and letting go of the things and people that don't work for me anymore.  The biggest relationship letting go is the one with my immediate family.  It's sad but when have close relatives in your life that aren't as dedicated about maintaining their relationships as you are, there's just no point to pursuing the matter any further.  I decided to simply just tolerate their presence in my life and leave it at that.  I really don't care to be involved in any aspect of their lives.  Admittedly, I haven't really taken any initiative because I simply don't want to get hurt.  Yet, I can't help but miss the close contact that comes with having immediate family members close by.  It's nice to get together frequently, not always wait for a special occasion but if someone is always finding a "reason" not get together, then what's the point?  I have to move on with my life and foster the relationships that do work.  The ones that do work are my friendships.  What makes those friendships work is that we keep in touch via the sms.  We share our good times, commiserate the bad, put up with the complaining but it all feels more tangible than the in-person connection with my biological family.  Another relationship that works is the one I have with my bf.  For better or worse, it works because we work on it.  That's the key my friends, work on those connections.

The events of the past year have seen some incredible highs and some lows.  Of course the biggest high was finishing my thesis and getting my master's degree.  This ushered a series of ongoing events all centered on the theme of change.  Chiefly, transforming myself from grad student to working professional.  Sometimes it feels like I'm banging my head against the wall wondering "why is this all so hard?  It should be easy for me to find some sort of meaningful employment."  What I am realizing is that I needed to make a niche for myself and create something that I could point and say "here have a look at what I can do."  This is the exciting part because I feel like an entrepreneur.  The process of actually creating an niche for myself in the working world is an ongoing process but writing for myself has given me the confidence to approach people and talk to them.  That's a good thing.