Summer

Second semester done! It's been challenging, especially coming from another field, but you always have to start somewhere and gradually work your way into the thick of things, to the point where you can actually call yourself whatever it is you're trying to be without feeling like a poser. I still have a lot to do, but I'm making progress. Took my CPR class yesterday and my first group exercise class (taught by one of my classmates who just graduated). I'm gonna try and take all the different exercise classes so I at least know what they consist of, and then hopefully get certified in the fall. Also, I'm checking out the books that were used for the undergrad classes I didn't take so I can read the stuff on my own and catch up that way (worksite health promotion, risk management). And, of course, I'm catching up on my pleasure reading! I'm so happy it's summer and I have a break. I guess it'll be my last summer off before I officially jump back into the real world (of working full time) (I hope). That's why I'm not fretting too much over whether I'm working right now (which I'm not). But I'm learning and moving forward!

And though it's not a new topic, I feel like briefly revisiting the idea of how people define themselves – isn't it usually by what they're passionate about in life? How many people are passionate about what they do for a living? If you're one of them, it makes sense that you'd associate your identity with your job, I think. If you have a job that you don't care about but are pursuing something else on the side, you'd identify yourself by whatever that other pursuit is. Does it matter whether you're earning a living at what you love? Well, I think for most people, life is better when income and passion about the work merge together, but it's more important that you at least have the two things (separate or not). And defining yourself by your passion is the key thing. (I guess an argument can be made for not having your passion be your source of income because it adds pressure and takes the fun away, which I can understand. But I also think it's important to not hate your job or it'll wear you down. You should definitely do something you at least like). 

I'm happy to be studying to get a job in something that interests me greatly (and that I can say I'm passionate about). So I will hopefully be one of those people who defines herself by her job, at least somewhat. Yet I also define myself by my love of books and reading and language and stories (which can actually be told through many forms), even though that love probably won't overlap very much with what I do (or with what I'm studying now). But that's okay. I guess it just sometimes feels like a double life, hehe (or maybe not, because lots of people like to read or do other things in their spare time. Nobody is all about their job 100% of the time). And being a reader, it makes me sometimes step back and observe myself as if I'm still trying to make a story out of my life. Why do I do that? Am I that important of a person that my life story needs to be told? Haha, no. But I think it might have something to do with the fact that writers are always observing life from the outside, always looking for stories or details from life that could go into a story or inspire a story. But I don't identify myself as a writer because I don't have ideas floating through my head all the time the way writers do. I always had to struggle for ideas. And that's not very fun. So I simply identify myself as a reader instead. Maybe a thinker, hehe.

But going back to the double life thing, I know that a love of stories was never enough. Not just because I didn't have ideas for stories or because it's hard to make a living at. But because there was something else I was passionate about. And that was physical movement. And how it's incorporated into life, especially if you're not an athlete. It frustrated me over many years of working that many jobs in modern society are so restrictive in that regard. Cubicles. Ugh. I couldn't do it. And it was affecting my health because I ate less and less to compensate for less physical exertion, so I became thin but unfit. (And I'm still trying to remedy that now a little bit). So health was always an interest for me underneath everything, even as I was pursuing other things. It just happened to come to the forefront, finally. And not a minute too soon because I needed something else to do with my life anyway. So I'm glad I'm pursuing it. And if you think of it another way, being healthy can allow you to pursue your other passions more easily. (And in my case, having a health-related job that makes me feel good about myself instead of a job I hate will allow me to enjoy my reading and stuff more because I won't be despairing about wasting my life and my potential the way I was before).

Hmm, so when am I going to start writing about fitness and the stuff I'm learning? I don't know, lol! I guess I don't have anything to say about it yet, but we'll see. So much for me attempting to have a non-personal blog, huh? I know some professional bloggers who do sort of intertwine their personal life with professional, which I always liked and hoped to emulate. But I don't know what you'd call my blog. I'm purposely leaving out the personal, personal stuff, but it's still not really professional either. Oh well. It's just a blog.