Make Your Own Map — The Best Advice I Didn’t Receive
She cleared her throat, waiting for me to say something. I crossed my arms and leaned back on the oversized sofa, my lips pursed together. We stared at each other for a long moment. I heard the old, standing clock from my grandmother tick in the background.
She cleared her throat again, and then sighed, annoyed.
“Well, I was hoping you would start, but since you don’t seem to be interested in that then I’ll go first.”
I didn’t make a move. I noticed that her cheeks were flushed. Her jaw pulsed. She sighed again.
“You know, Emily, building a career takes work. A lot of work. And you don’t always start where you want to. Sometimes you have to take jobs you’re not that interested in and work your way up. That’s what I had to do at different times, and that’s what your father had to do. It’s just the way it is.”
I continued to stare. I understood her point, but it wasn’t relevant to what was happening. I had graduated from college in the middle of the biggest recession since the great depression. I was graduating with a great GPA. And I had worked as a store manager at the mall, working my butt off the last two years of college to save money to travel. And I had finally done it. In one month, I would be flying to New Zealand and staying there for the better…
