Life in general has been interesting this week, as the saga of our "new" lives continue to unfold - as Jim settles into this thing we're calling Self Employment; as we start to take a closer look at our finances and see how/if this new arrangement will work; as we learn to take on different roles within the structure of daily living. This week a series of events occurred which tends to reinforce my faith in the cosmic order of the universe, making me think that perhaps someone is keeping an eye on this sparrow after all. One of my colleagues, our office manager actually, has been going through a really difficult time in her personal life. I've felt a bit beleaguered by fate, but my situation pales in comparison to the things she's been through this summer. It wasn't a huge surprise that she took a rather sudden leave of absence from her job.
However, her loss leaves a large hole in the day-to-day operations of our company. Her position includes everything from answering phones to ordering supplies, filing to fixing coffee, processing mail to making bank deposits. I'm sure you can see what's coming next...yes, I've been offered the position with a rather nice increase in salary.
Technically, I'll be sharing the position with another co-worker who quite coincidentally just returned to our company after working full-time for one of the large insurance agencies in the area. She decided (much to my delight) that she preferred the small, close knit atmosphere of our office, along with the more flexible hours and less pressured work life. The two of us have been job sharing our current position for several years, and have a fabulous working relationship. We literally complete each other's sentences, and are tit for tat on so many levels...she prefers coming in early and I'd rather stay late. She likes to take time off in the summer, and I prefer my vacation time in winter.
We complement each other extremely well.
We even worry about the same things. Like change - we both get anxious about it, and we both admit to being a wee bit trepidatious about the way this will work. She's worried about feeling overly pressured at work, the feeling that caused her to run screaming from her last position. I'm worried about giving up the flexibility that I've come to count on. We both worry about fulfilling all the requirements of this position on top of the responsibilities of our original jobs, which we will retain as well.
I'm also wondering what it's going to be like, working 30 hours a week. I'm spoiled, I know, but I've never worked that many hours at a "steady" job. Am I going to get bored? Will I have enough of that all important time to pursue the things I'm passionate about, the activities that feed my soul?
But for the past couple of months I've been wondering about ways to increase my income, going so far as thinking about applying for another part-time job, or actively seeking more jobs as an accompanist. And here, dropped into my lap, comes an opportunity for additional work in a setting where I'm already comfortable and familiar.
What could be more serendipitous than that?
However it plays out, the opportunity itself has given me cause for hope. It's almost like a sign that there are positive processes working in the universe for me. I've had a difficult time believing that lately. One of my favorite verses in the Bible has always been this one from Romans..." and all things work together for good for those that love the Lord."
All things working together for good...could that be happening in my life right now?
I hope so.
And I hope it's happening in yours.