I came across this quote the other day:
I would never have chosen this path, but I am very glad to be who I am, here.
— Audre Lorde, The Cancer Journals
It reminds me of this quote by Kathleen Norris:
Prayer isn’t asking for what we think we want. It’s asking to be changed in ways we can’t imagine.
Have you ever been grateful afterwards for a painful experience because you learned and grew so much from it?
February 4, 2021
Absolutely! In 1975 I was newly single with a small son to support, when one day — out of the blue — my employer dismissed me. A few weeks later I interviewed for what seemed a promising opportunity. No, I didn’t get the job. Instead I married him — the love of my life.
How neat!
This is a wonderful story!
I was out looking for work and happened to stop at the recruiting center in Baytown, Texas 49 3/4 years ago. I didn’t talk to the Army or Marine recruiters since Vietnam was in full force at the time. I did stop in at the Air Force recruiter’s office and visited with the Navy recruiter. The Navy had this interesting program called “nuclear power,” and the rest is history.
I finally stopped working in nuclear a little over 3 years ago.
That sounds like it was a great decision. 🙂
Too many to recount.
🙂
Hmmm, this is a very good question! Because we all grow from bad experiences…or at least learn something from them. I cannot think of anything right now, as it is 1:30 and I am sleepy and off to bed. But I know there must have been several times.
Sleep comes first! 🙂
I recall several instances when I was disappointed only to have something even better occur shortly afterward.
It’s always nice when that happens…it has happened to us, too. 🙂
I may not have immediately been grateful for a painful experience but months or even years later realized what was gained by going through it.
I figure if we have to go through the pain we might as well learn and grow from it.
At first I was going to say no! but then I remembered in January of 1990 my husband was fired from his 19 year job. I was devastated I was selling real estate and was new at it and not doing very well he could only find a job making $10 an hour and that was down from $18 an hour! Then he decided to paint the house and on the very last tip top way up on the ladder it turned over and he broke 5 ribs. Because of that he couldn’t work at all and I moaned and groaned because I had to quit selling real estate and get a real job with benefits and a paycheck. it was a bad time in our lives but if I had not done that I would never have had the computer skills I have and the job that I got starting at $7 an hour with benefits turned into the best thing I ever did. I worked my way up the ladder I’m retired after 13 years.
Wow! That must have been very rough. I’m glad it worked out well.
Yes, I suppose we all have…even to such things as being behind a slow car, and wanting to pass but no opportunity. Only to few miles down the road come on a horrible accident….have had that happen a couple times. And have wondered if I had got to pass, would I have been involved in the accident.
I’m glad you were lucky!
I’m sure I have other stories that I can’t remember, but one I do remember is that when we moved here back in 1974 I decided I needed to go back to work after staying home with our son for 2 years. I had taught high school business one year and hated it but it was all I knew I could do. So I looked for a job (really dreading it). There were no jobs in my field to be had, but 3 days before school started a superintendent called me and asked if I would teach remedial reading to 2nd & 3rd graders. I agreed but had absolutely NO IDEA what I was doing. However, I fell in love with teaching the little ones, went back to school and changed over to early childhood, later got my masters and taught for a total of 40 1/2 years!!! God had a plan for me…it just took awhile for me to discover it:)
I’m glad it worked out so well!
There have been plenty of “bad times” where I chose the wrong path – some of those paths come to haunt me occasionally and one in particular I finally had to say “enough is enough”
Of late with both the world wide thing and my own personal health issues – I’ve not exactly gotten on the wrong path – but forced there. Even though I miss a lot of what I was doing 2018/2019 which was a new pathway – I’m hoping it will come again AND this time period is for “marking time”
It’s interesting how some of my contacts here in NZ have been holidaying up a storm since we were released from the clutches of lockdown – and most have said “time for you to trip away” – somehow I can’t seem to get my head around it all – that I could go… And then “where did I want to go?”
One day – you’ll be reading about where I’m holidaying…
I’m looking forward to reading about it! I’m so glad you are relatively safe from COVID.
Definitely. We grow stronger because of what life gives us.
Some of us do, we lucky ones.