Should – Need – Like – Love

This semester I am enrolled in a Leadership seminar taught by one of my favorite profs of all times (insert a sigh of admiration for prof. Susan Van Weelden. I want to be like her when I grow up.) The challenge of that class went far beyond academic and here is one of my most important (renewed) discoveries so far.

For our last class we had to do an exercise called Should, Need, Like, Love. It involved thinking through some of the major things we do throughout the week and classifying them into those four categories. I was surprised to find out that there were 2 people in the class of 13 whose daily activities fell mostly into the like and love categories. After a mass in class pouring out of about 12 anxiety laden, academically stressed and socially deprived hearts it once again struck me: I AM A HAPPY PERSON!

Most of what I do in my life I can put into the like or love columns. I don’t live for the future, I don’t do school to be successful in 10 years, I don’t read books only because I have to (ok, mostly.) When I am frustrated and drawing blanks while talking to a friend or doing homework I can ask myself what it is that I would rather be doing and honestly say: there is nothing else I’d rather do and nowhere else I’d rather be. Yes, I do doubt of whether I am in the right program, in the right job or even in the right country. But I enjoy it for what it is and not for what it might be 5 – 10 years down the road. I may be shortsighted, but I am happy. I know that what God meant for me to do and to be is here and now and I don’t want to be missing it.

I look forward to every coming hour of my life (Even on this grumpy morning ;)) and every hour realize that I am blessed without measure.