A Bittersweet Accomplishment

I'm sitting next to a piece of paper that simply says, "Don't placate me." I have no clue what my family was up to last night.

It's Monday, the beginning of a new work week, and...

I don't have to go to work!

It's a beautiful thing, really. But at the same time, it's very bittersweet. Allow me to enlighten you:

The "Sweet"

I'm excited because we finally finished up our internship (a HUGE goal on my 111 in 2011 [Goal 72]). Four hundred hours is a lot, especially when it's for an internship. We were around the Pregnancy Crisis Center, the location of our internship, more than almost anyone (including full-time staff!).

I'm also excited to get a free week to get my tan on. I'm turning into Casper this summer from working in the office so much. 

Frankly, I'm thankful for being "done" (I don't think we'll ever be done with the PCC) because there were some tumultuous times this summer. Work is like that, though, and I learned to be okay with that.

The "Bitter"

First of all, I will miss Wednesday mornings. Every Wednesday morning, the staff of the PCC meets an hour before opening time to gather in prayer for the needs of the workers, the volunteers, and the clients who walk through the doors. It's beautiful, to say the least.

Because we were there so often and so involved in the work that we were doing, we built a lot of great relationships. I can't imagine not getting to see everyone who works there everyday anymore. It makes me sad to think about that, especially as we're preparing to head back to school. I'm sure we'll be making a visit back to the PCC sooner rather than later.

We often had water drinking competitions, inspired by my beautiful wife. I always came in last. I'll miss that.

I'm also sad to not be able to spend my days serving the community like I was able to at the PCC. I got to meet people that I otherwise would have never come into contact with. I got to build relationships and meet the needs of people every day, and God really affirmed to me that I was doing his work. I'm going to miss helping those people.

I'll miss being "that guy" who needs to eat everything in the fridge so that the 20 other female employees don't eat any of it.

I'll miss the ridiculous jokes and puns that happen at an STD testing clinic. You can only imagine...

So as you can see, finishing my internship is mostly bitter with a touch of sweet.

I learned a lot this summer, to say the least. From conflict management to "human growth and development," I've explored areas that I never thought I would breach on this side of Heaven. As a part of our internship, we were actually asked to evaluate our "performance" and to identify three strengths and weaknesses of our work this summer. Here's what I came up with:

My Strengths:

1. A willingness and ability to complete whatever tasks were asked of me.

2. Learning on the fly.

3. A willingness to learn and try new things.

My Weaknesses:

1.  A lack of initiative (though my wife would disagree) that is fueled by a lack of creativity

2. A lack of confidence

3. My time management skills outside of work

Needless to say, I still have a lot of room for growth.

I've learned a lot this summer. And though I'm sad to go, I know that God had me at the PCC for a time, and that I need to move on to whatever he has next for me in life, growing from the experience I was provided this summer. I'm eternally grateful for the opportunity to work alongside the staff and volunteers of the PCC, and I would do it again in a heartbeat if I could.

Have you ever done an internship? What sort of things did you learn from it? Have you ever been asked to evaluate your own on-the-job "performance"? What are some of your strengths and weaknesses in the workplace?

I'd love to hear from you about this (or anything else)! Just drop me a comment, and while you're at it, share this post with your friends! And don't forget to follow Life Before the Bucket!