Three years and some months
ago our families’ life changed. Mark lost his job. He lost his job of 13 years.
He lost the job that brought us together as a couple. It was the hardest thing
that has ever happened to him and me, and like many hard things, it was also the best thing that happened. A yoke had been lifted off our backs.
God, in his infinite mercy, removed this job when we could not.
Mark was unemployed for 1
month. It was the best month of our marriage. I jokingly tell people everyone should experience unemployment for one month. He belonged to no one but us. He spent time with the
kids, he spent time with me, and we enjoyed our family. We held on super tight to one another through an emotional grieving process. There were PLENTY of
nerves, worry and more then a healthy dose of anxiety, that part was not fun. We
knew God had removed the job, so he MUST have a plan for our future.
He took a job. He took a job
at a 20% pay cut, he wore a uniform, and carried a tool box everywhere he went.
Mark had no set hours and only 5 days off the entire year, no sick pay. He
would frequently get up at 4-4:30 to be at a job in the Woodlands then hop in
his truck to Sugar
Land then downtown and
back to the Woodlands, all in one day. He had to climb ladders, carry multiple
tools and work under unrealistic time constraints.
About a
year into the job he let me know that people treated him different, second
class. I was horrified. It made me so sad and angry. It made him sad for the people that were dialuzioned into thinking he was second class, no matter what job he held.
He said, and continues to say, that he is so grateful to have experienced that feeling. He knew what it felt like to be shamed because he was not dressed up or "important", and he would NEVER overlook anyone for any reason from that point forward. I loved him more.
Each physically or mentally difficult job he did as if he owned the
company. He woke up at those crazy hours and never complained. (hardly ever) He
was my rock.
We would sit and hold each
other sometimes on our couch and say, “This really sucks.” We knew, we so so so
knew, that there were tons of people worse off, and it gave us a comradeship
with those people. Sure, our kids are not homeless and they get almost
everything they want, but this is not the life we want either.
The experience of a bad job was the best thing our
family was exposed to. Mark had an appreciation an epiphany; family and
Christ is what define me, not my job. We had made it a point to eat together
as a family a few nights a week before; it became MANDATORY.
Every single weekend was precious, every detail of every part of our life outside "the job" was sacred.
I think I would have gone
crazy without his constant voice of faith. He knew this was an interim job, we
needed to be patient. Mark believed God had made him a promise. I had to have
faith.
We got pregnant. We had
Selah. Moses started Kindergarten. By God’s grace, and a village of support, we
were learning to survive.
A little over a year ago, a client
of his company, a law firm, recognized what I saw in him. And just like that,
our lives changed again.
I had no idea how
much stress a bad job was on our family unit, until it was gone. We were so free.
FREEEEEE!
“I have it all planned
out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future
you hope for. When you call on me, when you come and pray to me, I'll listen.” Jeremiah 29:11-12
 |
| Chase Tower |
Mark loves his job. He wears
a tie, he has a beautiful office on the 42nd floor, and he has
tremendous benefits with ample time off. Sill, it is just a job. I am grateful
for what we have, today. What is to stop complacency in the future? To start, I need to remember to ask God every single day to remind me how blessed I am.
 |
| The Cutest EVER |
 |
| Great perk to working downtown? Lunch with Daddy! |
 |
| I never pass up the opportunity to photograph food. |
 |
| Greek Salad from Niko Niko's!!! |
 |
| Big Girl Chair |
 |
| Eating Mommy's Pita |
 |
| Her First Fountain |
 |
| I love Market Square Park, and babies...and my boots. |
|
2 comments:
such a WONDERFUL post. thank you!
I second that, great post! I agree with unemployment being a blessing in other ways. I really enjoyed the time Law and I spent together when he was home for over a year.
Post a Comment