What Matters Most

Hi Friends, I officially finished my first year of graduate school about a month ago. Since then I've been going back and forth between scrambling to get my sh*! together and relaxing to my heart's content. I am staying in Austin for the summer, well, at least until the end of July. I will then spend my next semester at CIDE (Centro de Investigacíon y Docencia Económicas) in Mexico City. It's a great opportunity (/experiment) that LBJ has offered me and I'm diving in head first. I've made a few contacts down there and cannot wait to get started. Until then, however, I'm busy at Rainforest Partnership continuing the internship I began in January, although now full time. I am working with the Project Coordinator on a variety of different management and process related issues like measurement and evaluation, grant management, and, most recently, looking at how to set up a subsidiary office in Peru. It keeps me busy and I'm loving it. This brings me to the purpose for my post, however.

 As much as I love working with nonprofits, I continue to have conversations with friends about this particular career choice. Rubie and I have sat down many a time in Peet's and Philz struggling with the contradictions and financial stresses that so often accompany nonprofit work. Working in Peru together as teachers was not an easy endeavor, and if we just had the drive and know-how to be entrepreneurs or engineers we would not have been financially struggling as much as we were. That being said, I would not change my decision for the world. I learned an incredible amount about myself, about Peruvian society, and about connecting with people. It's what I feel driven to do. Being at LBJ and UT has challenged me to question my skills and talents, wondering if I would be better off as a statistician or on a track to get my PhD. While some may feel dedicated to be life-long academics or prefer to work in an office, I cannot force myself to feel any other way than what I do. What matters most is that you are doing something that fulfills you. That is not to say that you can't be smart and make money (I do plan on earning a living wage someday...), this cannot be discounted as irrelevant. Chelsea and I spoke the other day about "playing the victim/martyr", and I certainly don't want to give that impression. But what I'm trying to convey is that, while not easy, I have chosen a path that I am passionate about and, after all is said and done, I am proud of working for a social cause. I may not always choose to work through the nonprofit sector, but I do plan on being a public servant in the truest sense of the term. I want to help people, communicate with them, and work towards creating a more sustainable future for all peoples.

In the mean time, I'll keep trekking along through my unpaid internship, knowing it's the best decision I could have made for myself. My life, my work, my friends, and some fantastic jams on Spotify will keep my going for now :)

 On a lighter note, Caitlin and I visited the historic LBJ Ranch out in Johnson City, Texas (about 1.5 hours West of Austin). It was a beautiful (albeit hot as hell) day and we got to see some gorgeous views of Hill Country that I'd like to share with you. One of the best parts of the day was at the very end where we topped off our lunch with some peach cobbler and ice cream. That, unfortunately, I cannot share with you ;) Enjoy!