Sarah Day 18--
When I was 15 years old, I got my first part time job. I was a waitress at a restaurant in the Best Western, and I only worked the mornings. I would get up at 4:30 a.m. on Saturday's and Sunday's, and I would work from 5:30 a.m to about 11:00 a.m. I will admit, that was not my favorite job since I was a busy teenager with a lot on my plate. I would have much rather been sleeping in on my weekends and enjoying my days off, but mom and dad taught me to work . . . So I worked.
Shortly after I quit my serving job, I started working at Arnold Avenue. This was a small convenience and movie store, and I loved it. It was the perfect after school job with the perfect amount of hours. My boss always worked around my schedule, and he valued me as an employee. I worked there from 10th grade up until I graduated from NCTC. However, even after I finished at NCTC and moved to Fargo, my boss would let me come back and work on holiday breaks. I do not think I could have picked a more perfect place to work.
When I went to college, I ended up working at Lonestar Steakhouse and Saloon. When I moved to Fargo for college and was looking for a job, serving was my last resort. I did not love my first serving job, and I seemed to think every other job would be the same. With so many college students looking for jobs, waitressing was what I ended up with. Believe it or not, I loved it! I worked quite a few hours at Lonestar. When I was hired there, Jesse was in Grand Forks going to school and UND, and I had nothing to do with my spare time. Working on a Friday or Saturday night, I could make $200 in tips in 4 hours. My most was $350, but that was working the whole day. I think when I go back to school next fall, I will go back to serving. It's a pretty stress free environment and a great way to make friends.
Now, I have been working at a hospital for the last year and a half. I worked at Altru hospital in Grand Forks until October of this year, and shortly after that I started at Sanford hospital in Thief River. Sanford is much more up my alley, if I have to choose one. It deals a lot less with direct patient care and a lot more with reception type duties. I would rather sit at my computer desk all day and do computer work, then go in and out of patient rooms, catering to their needs. Nursing is not in this girls future!
Since I started at Sanford, I have worked a lot of hours. I don't have a whole lot to do around here, and I like the extra pay that I usually get. I could be convinced to work just about any time or any day. This is both good and bad. The good part is that my paychecks are obviously better when I work more hours. The bad part is that working so much can be extremely exhausting. I don't know how to say no, when I know I should.
Today, my good deed was exchanging shifts with a girl this Friday. Starting Saturday, I have 5 days off. I was supposed to be done working on Friday at 3:00 p.m., but one of the girls asked me if I would switch shifts with her and taker her 3-11:30 p.m. shift. She said that her family was celebrating Christmas that night and she just needed the evening off. I really did not want to do it because I hate getting off late and I feel like I have already done enough. I have picked up an extra eight hours this week, and that can be a lot. I contemplated what she was asking for a while and I almost said no, but then I looked at her schedule. She is scheduled all weekend and most of next week. I felt bad knowing that I was going to have 5 days off to celebrate the holidays, and she wasn't going to have any, so I said yes.
She was very grateful and told me that I didn't have to feel pressured to change if I didn't want to. When I was contemplating if I wanted to make the switch or not, this blog popped into my head. This blog is about kindness and giving, and trying to bring happiness into the holidays for both myself and people around me. This is just one very small thing that I can do for someone around the holidays. If it wasn't for me, my coworker would not be spending Christmas with her family. I have said before that family comes first, and as much as I would have enjoyed my evening off, I still think that family should always come first. Family is always the most important thing. Always.
Sarah
It is almost MIDNIGHT and I am finally getting to my post for the day. I made a final trip to Fargo today for a little final Christmas shopping and some "me" time to get my hair done. I was looking forward to the day as a friend was going with and that is always a FUN time. When we finally got there, it was beginning to mist a little. No problem as it was still warm enough to prevent freezing. However, throughout the day it began to snow too. As the skies began to darken, it was evident that getting home was going to be a challenge!
Typically, I would take 75 home as it is shorter, but we were closer to the interstate and traffic was a nightmare with the holidays approaching. Hence, we opted to head that direction rather than trekking across town. MISTAKE! The interstate was a nightmare. Glare ice in a lot of places. BIG semis that were not moving at all. An accident happened and there were numerous emergency vehicles dealing with the aftermath, so needless to say, much of the interstate journey was incredibly slow going.
Finally, we made it to the 100 road which would take us to 75. I just wanted to get away from the interstate traffic as soon as possible. What would have normally been a couple hour trip took almost four. I am pretty shot, but also committed to the journey I have began with my daughter.
Today my good deed is minimal. We headed into Scheels where there was a Salvation Army bell ringer. My pocket was filled with change and the elderly gentleman looked a little tired. I pulled out the entire fist full and dumped it into the tin can. Merry Christmas he said . . . you too and I bounded into the store. On the way out a group of little boys had taken over and were singing. I am guessing that they got a whole lot more attention than the gentleman did cuz dang they were cute:)
Gordman's was also one of our stops and there was the sweetest little boy sitting with his mommoms ringing the bell. I had decided that this would be my deed for the day so I needed to continue my trend. I pulled out a few bills, pushed them into the narrow slot, and wished the pair a Merry Christmas . . .man they were sweet:) Sigh . . .
Stop three . . . the mall. More bell ringers. This was a pair of ladies and they were smiling and chatting as they rang their bells. Again, I dug into my purse and pulled out some bills, put them into the red can, smiled, and they wished me a Merry Christmas.
I really did not know what I was going to do today, and in many ways this seems a little small, but for those who were ringing the bells, I am assuming that a lot of folks just walk on by. For three of them, I hope my little gift meant something. I think it is important to remember that even if the gift or the deed seems small, it might just be really significant to someone.
Prayers for Little Gifts of Love,
Sheila
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