interlaken, switzerland.And like that, this application packet is signed, sealed, and submitted! All those words and short-answer passages so carefully manicured and selected for their ability to impress and convey (quick, do I come across better as adventurous or daring, innovative or is it better to be persistent), even the thank-you cards are stamped and ready and near-smothered with grateful love.
Now we wait. And wait.
Oh, this waiting game. My poor inbox is pushed to the line with my page refreshing. I imagine my little laptop in person form, a little engineer spouting steam between his ears as he digs through all my email, thinking, okay, it's regular refreshes from here on out, every thirty seconds or so, folks.. OH, sorry, false alarm, that's just a shopping catalog, but stay with me now, we got our fingers crossed and a feeling about the next one...
Somewhat surprisingly, it's much easier than I thought it would be to find the talking points I've worked for and embraced these past four years. This is an entirely different situation compared to coming out of high school, where I struggled to find ways to set myself out and away from the middling crowd. Suddenly, it's no longer a competition. For the first time, I am simply describing myself - yes, I did do that, and yes, I can do more! - and I'm just plain proud.
I'm also so proud to know all the women I have asked for recommendations and to know them the way I do. Some of them have been there since the very beginning, on that first day of college where I looked up at those big Greek letters and wondered if I'd ever find a home. Others I met much later, yet have been there ever since as mentors, sisters, and friends.
I guess those last few lines could sound a little strange to someone who didn't know what I am applying for. Well, this is what I've applied to so far:
marketing firms and
advertisement agencies and
design firms and
human resource firms and...
Just too many places! But this most recent application packages, and really, a good part of my heart, rests on this one position - to work as a Leadership Consultant for my little 'ole sorority (it's actually kind of a grand organization to be a part of - but I could go on about this forever).
For now, so as not to push fate into conspiring in depressing and unfortunate ways, we will close this train of thought here and keep hush on further details until (and unless) the process moves forwards (!!). At least I have lots of interesting thank-you gifts to work on while I wait!*
*One of my professors is an expert on Dracula (I'm serious! She kept coming up on Google with all the Gothic Literature research I did in her class, too cool!), so in order to say thank you for the lovely recommendation she wrote me, I painted her a little canvas depicting her favorite literary villain wandering around the Carpathian mountain range. I can honestly say that you will never find me resorting to gift card presents... and if you do, that is a sure sign of psychological distress and an imminent breakdown on my end, so prepare yourself accordingly if the unthinkable ever happens.
