"... A new thing for me ...)
Yeah! That's a good change then! 😄
"... A new thing for me ...)
Yeah! That's a good change then! 😄
He means leave from his graduate program. He still has a job to go to every day, although your question still has relevance.Originally Posted by pinkytoe
My take on UL's situation is that he is looking for a passion to fuel his life. Since fishing went by the wayside, he's got nothing. That is too bad, I dont know what to do about that. Seeking out your passion in life is important.
I am at a bit of a crossroads right now, mentioned in earlier thread about buying out of town real estate. I kinda have a passion and a filled up life April-July ( prime gardening season) but still need other activities to round out life and make it richer especially after gardening season.
For what it's worth, my DW has taken a leave of absence from her work due to exhaustion and clinical depression. She (and I) see it as a time to recover and recharge and to gain some perspective on what comes next. Only a couple of weeks into it, she feels better for not having to meet several deadlines a day, switch continually among dozens of tasks, and attend soul-sucking meetings. She has seen her doctors to rule out new physical issues and her meds have been adjusted. They'll take time to build up in her system, so she does not expect an immediate change but she does expect a positive change.
But this is not just a vacation. It's time for DW to examine what it is about her job and (maybe) her life that depletes her -- or what it is which would recharge her but isn't present now -- and how to change things. It's possible DW won't return to her old job (though she could). She might opt for working at a different agency, with the novelty and different challenges that would offer over the next several years. Or she might go for a lower-level job within her current agency (one she had before and enjoyed). Some of her choice depends on pay and medical coverage and location. She likely won't get her preferred choice for all of them. I may end up getting a McJob to cover some expenses, though that alters DW's work-life balance as well. So which aspects are most important? Time to decide that, outside of the day-to-day that makes it so easy to push contemplation and reflection off the table.
Ultralight, I agree with the others that you should see a doctor to rule out medical issues contributing to your feeling of disengagement. But I might also suggest talking with a career counselor or even a creditable life coach who could draw from you what you value and what brings you happiness and how you might be able to get that out of a job. What I've read in your posts over the past few months indicates that you're casting about for something but you haven't found it yet. Maybe it's time to see if someone else can help you find it. Doing the same thing and expecting a different result is, well, it's not going to work. JMHO.
Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome. - Booker T. Washington
What are you actually thinking? A sort of atheist version of the "Benedict Option", where you retreat, regroup and re-engage? Or a more or less permanent hedgehog strategy?
You seem to be despairing over a lack of perceptible impact. Here's the thing: apart from a relative few individuals like Alexander the Great or Philo T. Farnsworth, that applies to most of us. We bang away our whole lives, and can't tell if we moved the needle or not. Me, I'll take vain hope and cheerful futility over craven surrender any time. A man who can laugh at his own pretensions will always have reason to smile.
OK, I have to say this. Isn't life a joy to be savoured? Has the dark melodrama on the media taken the zest for life and its little miracles away?
I love my flowers! I watch a little puppy dancing and chuckle.
I was standing still and watching a truck pick up a large garbage bin from a property. As I was admiring the care of the driver, the smooth operation of the cable pulling it onto the truck base and the design in balancing the weight of the bin and the stability of the truck, a married mid-aged couple walked by. They looked at me, looked at the bin and then back at me with a puzzled look on their faces. I told them that I was admiring the whole design process to make such things possible for both consumers and the service providers. They laughed at me at first, then got quiet and continued their walk. Next time we met, I was gently teased about my interest in mechanical things.
i see them regularly now and they always stop to talk, sharing about something.
There is so much good going on. Don't lose sight of that and celebrate it! Stepping off my podium now
As Cicero said, “Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all the others.”
I noticed that you no longer seem to be interested in things that are involved in changing external circumstances that are seen in some way as riddled with problems, e.g. the environment, social and political injustice, mistakes you see friends making, etc.
Some people are naturally oriented towards righting wrongs. Others are what I call "gap fillers," filling a need where there is one, or even filling a need where no one realized there was in the first place. Some do this through creative artistic work, others by building businesses, others by creating human or rescue animal families, and so on.
You seem like an intelligent, goal-directed man who genuinely feels driven to live your life actively, meaningfully and with purpose. Perhaps you could spend your time asking yourself the question, "If I had to create something, what would it be, and why? How would I do it?" Maybe that would help re-orient your thoughts--if that's what you want.
Did you take a leave of absence from your job? What does that do to your loan repayment plan?
Float On: My "Happy Place" is on my little kayak in the coves of Table Rock Lake.
No, leave of absence from the social work program. So if I want to go back I don't have to reapply.
They'd not allow me to take one from my job. The give too few F*&%$s for that. haha
I am going to take this semester off to reflect. Next semester I might take a couple classes in other fields to see if they are of interest.
I agree with you. Disengaged means not having control of your life... or things out of your control as you described above. I am struggling with this as well. I am trying to be more positive and go out of my way looking for things to feel good about. It is difficult with the constant political drama, hurricanes, wildfires (global climate change) etc. The thing that has helped somewhat for me is to try to find something to look forward to. I have been avidly planning and going on small "adventures". That is traveling to places nearby, perusing visitor guides and doing things outside my normal realm. I am leaving next week for a trip to Alaska. I am excited and have been looking forward to this trip for quite a while. You mentioned you enjoyed your recent trip. Perhaps you should do a small adventure as well .... something to look forward to? It may help dispel hopelessness?
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