The Economy Comes-a Callin'

The growing economic slowdown finally hit home today -- A. called me as she was headed out of her office this afternoon to let me know that her boss had called her into his office and laid her off. Business there had gotten so bad that he really didn't have any choice in the matter; however, he was gracious enough to offer her a good recommendation if she needed it.

Naturally, this came as a shock, although A. wasn't nearly as upset as she might have been. She had been talking for a while about possibly adjusting her schedule so that she would have more time at home with the girls, and to give her more time to study for the LSAT (which she'll be taking in June). Additionally, we're blessed enough with the job that I have that we felt confident that we'd be okay if A. were to ever leave her job, so no great worries there either.

Having been through an extended period of unemployment last year, we're psychologically better able to handle things like this -- although having that kind of life experience is never fun, no matter how strong or better prepared it makes you. There is a blessing with all of this, though -- a job interview in the morning for her. Another company in the area had contacted her recently after having run across her resume, and a successful phone interview last week led to a request for an in-person meeting tomorrow. It's still too early to know what this position entails and whether it will allow her to use her education and previous work experience to great advantage, or when this job would even start if she is hired, but we are hopeful that this might be the silver lining in all of this.

An Order of Good News With a Side of a Parable

Our family was thankfully the recipient of some really good news today, as A. received a job offer from a company with whom she had recently had a series of interviews. They were very impressed with her background and education, and she was equally impressed with the quality of the employees and management at the company -- and especially with the fact that it was the first company she had seen in a while (as either an employee or an applicant) where everyone genuinely seemed happy to be there and actually enjoyed their work. Obviously, we don't know what the future holds for us, particularly with my ongoing search, but this is great news and a great move in the right direction. Now she gets to enjoy just a few more weeks of vacation before she heads back to work -- and two more weeks before our youngest begins her foray into the world of daycare.
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I also had one of those parable moments today, where an incident that I witness suddenly hits me with a different, deeper meaning. MB has been going through an extremely trying phase lately -- trying for her parents. I'm convinced that she skipped over the terrible twos and held out until recently, and we've been feeling the full effect of her tantrums, mood swings, and preschool testiness. Sadly, one of the victims of her mood has been her little stuffed doggy, who has been her closest companion since she was old enough to grab a toy. In the past few days, every time she gets angry about something, doggy is the first one to feel her wrath -- usually being thrown to the floor while MB angrily shouts, "I don't want doggy!"

She did it again today, and not long afterwards her grandmother said, "Well, doggy will still be there when you need him." That was when the parable moment hit: how often do we ignore or throw God aside while we try to do things on our own, or in a way that we shouldn't be doing them, and yet when we get tired, frustrated, or realize that we can't do things on our own, God will still be there when we need Him?

It's a simple message, but one which we often forget. Once again, a little child shall lead them -- even if the "them" is nothing more than our thoughts and our comprehension of the deeper things going on in our lives.

Still Here -- Just Not Much to Say

The silence here over the past week is pretty indicative of the fact that there just hasn't been much to write about. I will say that there are some potentially exciting new opportunities on the horizon with regard to employment, so I'm looking forward to seeing where these new roads lead. I've also been dealing with a combination of not being able to sleep at night and being exhausted all day; I'm hopeful this, too, will pass [soon].

I'm well into the first volume Wiesel's autobiography and have found it to be an amazing and powerful read. I've been amazed with the amount of regret and anguish he still feels over several events from his life (particularly from his childhood), and he does such an incredible job of writing vividly that it's been very easy for me to feel the pain he still feels: not really knowing his father until after they were taken to Auschwitz; wishing that he had taken advantage of those extra times to play with his little sister when she asked instead of sitting under a tree reading his books, and how that all came back so painfully at the instant she, along with his mother and grandmother, were taken straight off the transport and to their deaths; and many others along those lines. He also talks at some length about the struggles he experienced -- still experiences -- with his faith in God, his anger with God, his disappointment in what he perceived as God's inaction at times of crisis, and his overwhelming anger and sorrow that the people who knew what was happening to the Jews in Europe (the pope, world leaders, even other Jews) didn't do more to bring attention to that horror. I still have 2/3 of the book left to read, but I would already give this book a 5 out of 5 for its emotion, its sincerity, and the powerful, overwhelming story it tells.

A Friday Calm

There's a big sense of calm in the house right now, and I think that it's due in large part to two things: A. had a job interview this morning at a company that is literally right around the corner from our house, and we're leaving this afternoon for our Shrine Mont weekend. The car is gassed up, the suitcases have been packed and loaded, and I'm gathering my short stack of books (some Barbara Brown Taylor, Anne Lamott, my journal, the Bible, and maybe one work of fiction; I haven't decided -- and yes, this does qualify as a short stack. Anyone who has seen the books in our house knows that for a fact!).

For the next few days, the only sounds will be children playing on the lawn, the conversations between members of our church family, my pen on the pages of my journal, the flipping of pages in a book, and (hopefully) the wind blowing through the trees in this Shenandoah Valley retreat.

Have a great weekend, everyone -- and to all the dads out there, Happy Father's Day!

And the Phone Call Said.....

The phone finally rang today; unfortunately, it was a "we've decided to go in another direction" call. About one hour of disappointment and wondering what my next step will be, and then I was back on an even keel. There are some other jobs that I'm waiting to hear from, and I know that regardless of how things are looking now, there's a reason that my life is playing out in this particular way.

It's nice to have daughters that aren't aware of the stress that A and I are under right now; as a friend told me in an e-mail, the only thing they will remember is that they got to spend some extra fun time with Mommy and Daddy. And despite feeling a bit blue because of the call, it was all okay when I picked up MB at pre-school and she greeted me with a big smile, a beautiful Father's Day painting, and excited shouts to her classmates of, "There's my Daddy!" That was my gift for the day!!

Approaching the Finish Line (Hopefully)

Is a new job finally right around the corner? I've had a series of second interviews with several places in the past two weeks, and this morning had my fourth interview -- a breakfast -- with the president of a D.C. trade association. They anticipate announcing their decision tomorrow or early next week, and as one of the two finalists (out of what I understand was originally a pool of 200 applicants) I'm getting antsy. I won't get excited, though; I've promised myself (and A.) that I won't do that until someone puts an actual offer on the table.

So God's answer to my prayers for the past several months could be here soon; I just have to be patient and see what His answer is -- to this and to A's ongoing job search.....