Celebrate Good Times (C'mon!)

Y’all, 

I have good news to share with you this week (glory, glory, hallelujah!).

I’ll preface by saying that this blog space is not a place where I intend to share traditional life updates necessarily, but more a place where I can start conversations (some fun, some challenging) using my own experiences and the experiences of others in my life. However, I’m making a bit of an exception this week because I know that many of you reading this have been following along with my journey over the past year, both professional and personal. 

Since graduating with my MPH last June, I’ve been trying to figure out what professional path made the most sense for me, particularly given the fact that I am not one to settle and that we were/are in the middle of a pandemic. After grad school, I took a much-needed break and enjoyed the summer while also pondering what it would look like for me to start my own business related to public health in the entertainment industry. That hit a bit of a dead-end after a couple of months (though doing that work is still a long-term goal of mine), so I decided to pivot (PIVOT!). 

I went more of the traditional route for a few months applying to jobs in the area that seemed relatively interesting, but none of them felt quite right. I started expanding my search to the West Coast more broadly and North Carolina (idk, I just love North Carolina) trying to pursue public health positions that took a more innovative and entrepreneurial approach. 

During this period, I spent some time working remotely at Clackamas County Public Health doing health equity work related to COVID response and vaccine planning, distribution and education but I knew all the while that that was a short-term fix for me. Throughout, I prayed that God would send me wherever he wanted to and was open to all of the possibilities. 

Well, it turns out that he sent me to the same spot that I already was and I’m so cool with that. This past week, I accepted a position as the Program Coordinator at the OSU Center for Health Innovation (OCHI) for their mental health promotion and substance use disorder prevention program. It honestly could not be a better fit and I feel so lucky that this dream job ended up being in my own backyard. The story of how I got here is a pretty funny and encouraging one that I can dive more into at another time but, long story short, it’s very clear that this is where I’m supposed to be right now. I start on July 1st. 

So now begins the real transition out of school-pandemic-limbo-mode and into my actual, settled adult life. This means change is a-coming. The good news (there’s more!) is that on the same exact day that I got offered my new position, I also got an unexpected phone call from one of Bethany Hamilton’s employees (you guys remember Bethany - super cool surfer, two feature films, a survivor of a shark attack that ended up giving her an awesome perspective on life - yeah, that one) who shared that my application for personal life coaching by Bethany and her team that I had submitted on a whim the previous month had been accepted and that she and Bethany were so excited to work with me. Um, wait, WHAT?!? 

Let me back up for a sec. I’ve been taking an online, self-paced personal development course designed by Bethany for the past year or so. Because of this, I got an email in late-ish April that said that Bethany and her partner in this work, Sarah Weber, were starting a pilot coaching program and were only accepting about 10-12 young women who were in a place in life where they would benefit from the goal-setting, accountability, and encouragement that comes from coaching. Right from the jump, it seemed like it would be a great fit for me, not only because my long history of being a professional coach makes me biased toward its value, but also because I’m in a place in life where I’m experiencing transition and change at every turn. 

So, I applied just to see what happens. The kicker is that I had just left my job at the time, didn’t have my next job lined up, and the program was real expensive. But, you know, I thought I might as well just throw it out there and figure out the financial details if and when I was chosen to participate. Welp, fast forward a few weeks and I’m chatting on the phone with Sarah about how they want me on board. 

I am so thankful that this call came after my job news, otherwise, from a practical standpoint, I would have had to say no. But, because I knew that additional income was on the way, I was able to say yes. For transparency’s sake (because I like transparency), it’ll still be tight for me between now and when I get settled into my next position, but because this is a once in a lifetime opportunity I knew that I had to say yes and just figure the rest out later. I mean, c’mon, there’s nothing better for this gal than getting to develop a personal relationship with one of her favorite celebs. 

The really cool piece of all of this is that with both things - the job and the coaching opportunity - I knew that I was going to get them. God has given me this gift through his Spirit of feelings and intuition where I frequently (not always) know the outcome (or, at least, partial outcome) of a big decision or move in my life before it happens. I still feel totally insecure all along the way and doubt my own confidence in what will happen, but ultimately, I trust God that he’s given me some insight into part of his plan. It’s super weird, but it’s also super cool and I’m really grateful to him for it. 

I’ll close with this: 1) YAY FOR GOOD NEWS!!! I need it, I bet you need it - let’s relish in some goodness. And, 2) I feel really loved and encouraged by these turns of events, but they do not negate or eliminate the struggle with anxiety and depression that I’ve been experiencing over the last several months. I’m still actively working through those pieces. But, what I can tell you is that I feel hopeful and excited and those two things in themselves are such a gift. 

If this is your first time checking out this blog and you liked what you read, then I’d encourage you to read some of my other posts. I’d also love to connect with you offline and keep the conversations going. 

Xo, 

Abbey