cōnstantia f (genitive cōnstantiae); first declension
- firmness, steadiness, constancy, perseverance
- agreement, harmony
- (of character) steadfastness, immovability, constancy
My first name is short for Constance, which means "constant, consistent, and steadfast." It's a name that aptly describes my reservations about change. Over the last 26 years, however, I have come to learn that change, though potentially painful, is crucial to my personal growth. I don't think changing for the sake of changing is healthy, but if it helps me gain a new perspective, learn something about myself, or further my skills, then the pain of change is worth it.
Three years ago, I made a huge career and life change by joining an oyster company as its first marketer and moving to Boston to be with Jonathan. Boy, what an amazing ride it has been! Hands down, one of the best decisions of my life, both professionally and personally. I got to pursue my passion in food marketing and build a marketing program from scratch. I got to work for a manager who gave me the freedom to try crazy ideas. I got to spend weekends and holidays with my partner and enjoy Boston summers without college kids! It was three years filled with rare opportunities and amazing experiences I'm blessed to have had, and I will forever look back at that time fondly.
Jonathan super excited to find a horseshoe crab on the farm...
As young people, I think we often take time for granted. "I'll do it tomorrow. I'll do it next year. I'll do it after my next promotion." Lately, though, I've come to accept that time is something we can never get back and soon, we'll be forty with a mortgage, a few kids, and responsibilities we can't neglect. This is not an excuse to shy away from responsibilities, but rather, an acknowledgement that there's less room for risk and error when one has serious commitments.
So, with all that said, I am embarking on another life journey:
For the next year, I will be working and traveling around the world!
Let me answer a few questions right off the bat:
- I left my job at the oyster company to do this.
- Jonathan is not coming with me.
- I will be in Australia for the first 6 months, but I don't have anything lined up yet besides my first month's lodging.
- After Australia, I plan to travel through Southeast Asia and Europe for the rest of the year, and then return to Boston.
So why am I going?
Before I get into that, I want to mention for the record that deciding to leave my dream job and being apart from Jonathan were really hard decisions. And the fact that I still chose to go on this trip emphasizes how important this is to me.
There are a few reasons why I am going: my desire to work abroad, sightsee, and do something outside of my comfort zone (i.e. not having a plan), but the most important reason is I want to know what's out there. I want to know how Australians prepare their coffee. I want to know how the Japanese appreciate sushi. I want to know what authentic Vietnamese food, supposedly the best food in the world, tastes like! (Can you tell it's very food-focused?) Sure, I could have vacationed to these countries instead, but having a strict return date limits my opportunity to completely immerse myself in a new culture and explore it fully. After all, time cannot be bought.
If you know me well, you know the saying "Curiosity killed Connie" is pretty accurate, so in a nutshell, that's why I'm going. How am I feeling about all this? Ha, scared shitless, but super excited too! Not having a plan or knowing what to expect is not my MO, so this will all be about going with the flow.
As for timing, this goes back to not taking time for granted -- I want to do this while I'm still young. A conversation with my mentor encouraged me to think about it seriously, and I'm so glad I did. I don't want to be the person who will regret not going when I had the chance. I want to be the person who said I did it and was forever changed by it.
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Update 9/22/16
Since writing the above post two days ago, my travel plans have already been derailed. Guess I'm being tested to "go with the flow" from the start!