It's almost the end of March and my time in Guyan Valley is possibly winding down. It was nice to see my sister and brother in law last weekend and show them my job and I'm looking forward to a visit from my parents this coming weekend but I'd be really happy to see family and friends from home for a more extended period of time. I already know the transition back to PA is going to be really difficult. Wyoming County feels like my home now. I'm used to the winding mountain roads, the dialect, the lifestyle, and have a family here. And, although my job responsibilities feel crazy at times, I have a set routine. I know I meet new people every week, explain construction projects to them, run evening programming, work with our cooks, and manage our budget. I know what's in every aisle in Lowe's and our local hardware stores, how to work our dump truck, how to get permits for room additions, and how to work on very little sleep.
This job is the most difficult thing I've ever done. The summer is exhausting but there is a light at the end of the short, eight week tunnel. This year has certainly been something else. Although I'm beyond exhausted at this point after doing this job since May, I'm really thankful for this experience. I've been pushed to my limits this year in many different ways and learned a lot about myself. I'm much more of an independent person than I ever thought I was and have found that I can adapt to different situations pretty easily. For example, I meet new people every single week, get close to them, and then they leave and I have to start all over again. I've been forced to improve my communication skills this year through working with my staff, volunteers, home owners, and people in our community. I've also have been forced to learn what it truly means to "live simply." It takes me an hour to get to most stores and that has forced me to both be resourceful and plan ahead for things I will need. Also, seeing the situations that my home owners are in, I feel almost guilty buying as much for myself as I used to. I've found that I really don't need too much anyway. Plus, one of my families that I work for just made me this beautiful cross keychain one day as a "thank you" for working on her home.
There are so reasons I love this job. For me, it's the definition of a "dream job." I get to meet new people every week, get to learn constructions so I can fix up my own home later on in life, get to take road trips, got to experience Extreme Makeover Home Addition TWICE, get to drive around a pick up truck, dump truck, and huge van all the time and not pay for gas, and have gotten a chance to completely engross myself in a new culture for a year. I also appreciate the many little things that happen everyday that make me love this job. We just started a four room addition on a home. We're building a living room, kitchen, laundry room, and small dining area for this wonderful family! It's definitely the most intense project I've ever managed. The other day, we had torrential downpours and, when I walked up to the work site to check on the volunteers, I had found that they made their own tent to work under so they didn't miss a beat. Little things like that and, as I'm writing this, looking around on my back porch at the trees starting to turn green again have been making me really happy lately.
I've spent a year doing something I love but also putting other people's needs first and, it's really difficult for me, but my task now is to figure out what my next step is. I'm not entirely certain where I'm going to be in May once this contract is up but I do know that I'll be spending at least a few days on the beach or some other mini-road trip trying to sort it all out.
That's me driving my favorite truck-Augusta :)
Sisters at Twin Falls State Park
My hardware store that I brag about all the time <3
