Give Me a P!

What does P stand for you may ask? Well....
Prayer, patience, phlebotomy, Personal Progress and post-stress.

The last couple of weeks have been interesting ones. I received a new calling to be an adviser in Young Womens. I was also asked to accept the assignment to be Ward Camp Director again. (Luckily this year is Stake Camp so I don't have AS much to do.) However I have to get a lot done before Stake Camp and I only have about 8 weeks to do it in. That's a little crazy. I know it will all come together but it still makes me nervous. I was camp director once before and although I loved it I hoped to never have to do it again....lol
I got cleared to donate blood again! Yay!
That may seem like a weird thing to get excited for but I feel good when I donate. Plus I gotta say (and maybe this is sick and wrong) but I miss being around the venipuncture procedure. It's not as though I'm some psycho (huh that also starts with a P though...) that enjoys getting stabbed with a needle. I have no obsession with vampires, I just feel like a good person when I do it.  After we went to Mexico I found out that I had to wait a year to be eligable because we were in a malaria zone. Bummer. But I was cleared and was just waiting until I had time to dedicate to the blood bank.
I got off work earlier than usual one day and was running errands to the bank and what not. Well in my head I heard, "you should go donate blood."
At times like this you can think of things two different ways. One as though a mosquito was buzzing in your ear and you want to shoo it off, or two as a prompting. I suppose someone may also justify that it was just a thought I had in the back of my head that carried over to the surface but lets forget that option for a moment shall we? My reaction was to swat at the mosquito thought. I literally shook my head and said, "no, not today. I just don't feel like it." Then very clearly in my head I thought/felt/heard whatever, "no you NEED to go donate blood today." Then images of me being 16 and ignoring a prompting popped into my head and images of the car accident that resulted. UGH! I thought. FINE!
So I went to the blood bank on a prompting/whim. I'm not sure why I didn't want to go initially  Like I said I enjoy donating blood. It gives me a sense of purpose. I enjoy being around professional phlebotomists, it keeps my hopes of one day working in that atmosphere alive. I enjoy the Inland Northwest Blood Center because they always have wonderful treats afterwards and they are genuinely nice people and it's what got me interested in phlebotomy in the first place.
I grabbed a quick bite and went to the donation center. Almost the moment I walked in and confirmed I was there to donate, one of the main phlebotomists Maria looked and me and went  "OH! Great now I know your name. Jose and I were trying to think of it. We have some job openings that are coming up and we think you should apply unless you are already at the path lab or something?"
Hmmmmmmm..... maybe I avoided the car wreck this time?.......
I mailed in a lengthy applications and all the extra paper info I thought they may need the next day. Early this week I had a phone interview and Wednesday an in person interview that took nearly 2 hours with a three person panel asking me questions, as well as me doing a written Q&A.
I don't know if I will get this job. I don't even exactly know if that's the reason I felt prompted to go in there that day. But I do know that if I hadn't followed that prompting I probably wouldn't have had such a good opportunity otherwise. Or maybe someone just really needed my nice O- blood.
But this interview at the very least has excited me. I did really well in my interview. Does that mean I'm a shoe in? No. They can always hire someone with more experience or better qualifications. But it renewed a sense of capability I had been lacking for a while. I've had a few job interviews for phlebotomy since I finished school. I've had some exciting prospects. And each time I was left feeling deflated and discouraged. The difference in this interview was I left feeling challenged and excited. Maybe if not this time than another time? I'm more hopeful than I've been in a long time.

Through this process of receiving a new calling, new assignment, and the hope of my new career I've had to greatly rely upon prayer. I've lost count of the silent and vocal pleas I have shared with my Father in Heaven. I've sought council with Him, my husband, and my family to de-stress and overcome what felt like very overwhelming things going on in my life.

Another thing that has helped me focus on a bigger picture is the fact I am able to work on Personal Progress again as I am in Young Womens once more. I didn't have the inclination or drive as a youth to complete it. The program has changed so very much from that time though and I am encouraged and happy that I may complete it. I hate leaving things unfinished. It kind of drives me nuts. Even if those things don't really seem like a bit deal.

I'm working on the patience and post stress. I'm learning to delegate and take time to breathe. The experiences of the last couple weeks have taught me that it doesn't do any good to not get sleep over these things. It wont fix the problem, nor will it simplify it. It will only make you have a raging headache in the morning on TOP of trying to come up with a solution. I may be finally learning to place things in the Lords hands. I have to do my part of course and not procrastinate. But He certainly will help me shoulder any burden that is placed before me.

In other news this month....
I LOVED General Conference!
Izzy is now a year old and so very precious to us. (I haven't had time for pictures.) :(
Casey has confirmed he is double majoring and then plans on a masters degree.
 So that it in our lives!!!!
Love,
Heather