I Get To Do This

First published September 7, 2015

Up until a couple months ago, I had two jobs. I worked my 9-5, and then headed off to another office to work some more. My part time job consisted of administrative work for someone who had been my boss a couple jobs ago. A few nights a week I would make the 20 minute commute and take care of whatever she left for me to take care of.

The work was not glamorous. I didn't always feel a sense of accomplishment. I mostly felt exhausted from the 10 hours of work resting on my shoulders. Not wanting to wait that late to eat dinner, I would pack it with me and eat it planted in front of a computer screen.

Sometimes, it felt tiresome and, to be honest, beneath me. I have a college degree. Why am I always working? Why am I doing *this* kind of work? But several months before the job came to an end, I had this thought:

It's not that I "have to" do this, it's that I "get to" do this.

Sure, I had to make another commute while everyone else was going home, but how awesome was it that I could walk into an empty office with no one there to bother me? No, the work was not glamorous, but after a hectic day at job #1, how great was it to have work I didn't really need to think too hard about? Yes, sometimes it meant skipping something else I wanted to do, but it also meant extra money I wasn't making at my full-time job.

For every way that people could describe the situation as negative, I could point to something that made it a wonderful opportunity for me, while it lasted. In this economy, where some people can't even find one job, I was blessed to say I had two.

Whether it's to make ends meet, or because you're saving for something extra special, remember to count it as a blessing, no matter how frustrating it can be at times, because it's an opportunity not everyone gets to take advantage of.