Hard Work Always Pays Off

It has always occurred to me that my sister is as smart as a whip. She’s also a perfectionist and never lets anything go. She graduated with her Master’s Degree in Special Education in the fall of 2010. She got an additional certification in order to broaden her chances of getting a job. In fact, she just quit her third job which was as a tutor at a large facility. Thanks to my cousin, she got a Teacher’s Assistant position at a school not too far away. The kids were great and she enjoyed it. She enjoyed everything but the fact that she was getting paid to be a TA when she had an Advanced Master’s Degree. It was getting down to the wire. She was completely burned out, working three jobs and then coming home to do school work for the teacher she was working under. Not to mention the monthly-unlimited package from Hot Pilates that she just bought. She was totally burning her candle at both ends. Finally, she made the decision to quite the learning center. For her, this was a good thing and a bad thing. It meant less aggravation…and less money every week. “An epiphany” she called it when she nonchalantly told me she quit. She was at an all time low (and let me tell you, that’s lower than low).

Three days later, she gets a text message from a friend. A friend who graduated with my sister, who started working at the learning center with my sister and who got a job before my sister. The message was urgent, telling her to call as soon as possible, a position has opened up and her school needed a Special Ed teaching immediately. The next day, my sister had an interview set up. Was she excited? No. She was one big ball of anxiety.

The next day, I sat in her room pretending to be a third grade student. Hm! Of course, I did it for her, because I knew she’d have a heart attack if I didn’t obey her wishes, and at this point it was easier to abide by her rules than to watch the wrinkle in her forehead crease every time she walked into the kitchen. The lesson was catchy, as most of her lessons are. She’s really got her heart in the game, which is obviously the most essential part of being a teacher. She really did her research and seemed prepared to nail her demo lesson after the interview.

Tuesday rolls around and my sister leaves, two hours before the interview to get there and practice again. At about noon I get a text message. “I got the job!” So, there. There is hope. When you least expect it, something good always happens. Hard work ALWAYS pays off.