Craig asked me to guest write tonight...so I will try to do his blog justice. 


The transition to my new job has had some bumps to say the least.  Some days I have wondered if I was still having the kind of impact I had previously.  I was concerned with figuring out a new documentation system, working with new colleagues and making sure everything I did was "perfect".  With a new program in the works, I would settle for nothing less than perfection.  I, however, had to figure out how to get to perfection in 40 hours a week...add a little more stress to my already somewhat uncomfortable transition!  See, while most jobs (especially one like athletic training) don't care how many hours you work (when you are salaried), my contract stipulates that I will stay at 40 hours a week.  This means, during any given week, that I should not go over by any significant amount NOR should I be under by any significant amount-- easy, right?!?!?!?  Well, not so much...what about games that go into overtime or an injury that requires to you stay late to performed continued evaluation and talking to parents?  Those things are not in the "normal" work week! 
   In addition, my children are missing having me around.  While I certainly need to be employed, we had a lot more of the "prime family time" (3 to 7 or 8 in the evening) when I was not working in a full time position.  Then I started to wonder...have I done the right thing?  Should I have taken the job?  What about my pre-teen who is begging for time with me?  My amazing middle child who is not going to make waves, but who secretly misses me? Our sweet little girl who shows that she misses me by INSISTING on ending up in our bed (and directly on top of me) every night?  Then there is the fact that Craig is back on the road for work...it is a never ending cycle of who gets time with whom. 
    Anyway, I had and continue to have a lot of worries about this new position and what my impact will be and then...tonight happened.  Here is the story:
    While covering an away JV football game, this young man came up and began talking with me and says, "Momma, are you riding the bus home with us?" to which I answered, "No.  You know that I drive to games in case I need to be more flexible", etc.  He then asked if he could ride with me "because the bus is awful". To which I also had to answer in the negative.  BUT, we are missing the point-- he called me "Momma"-- ME!  The woman who is struggling to find her place in this new position!  You see, this young man is the son of a college classmate of mine and as soon as he discovered this a couple of weeks ago, I became special to him...he felt like he could relate to me because his mom and I had a connection.  He is a great young man who is sweet and kind, but he had no reason to connect with me-- he hasn't been injured and I did not know him before sometime after September 1.  Here is a child on whom I have had an impact!  YAY!  Here is the thing...in all of the ancillary crap, I had forgotten that this young man has put enough trust, faith and respect in me to call me "momma".  He has told others (it doesn't matter who it is) that I am his second mom...I don't know that I deserve the distinction, but I really appreciate it!  I don't feel like I have done anything particularly out of the ordinary for this boy, but he knows I care and that if he needed me, I would be right there to take care of him. 
   So, as I sit here reflecting on my evening, I cannot believe that I had so little faith as to think that I would not have an impact!  Here is the pearl of wisdom-  Don't lose sight of the amazing things by getting mired in the mundane.  Now, go out and be somebody's "momma"! 


Good night and God bless!