Apply and Publish

I love this photo. This is where I live. It’s on the Sunshine Coast, BC at Davis Bay. Look at the sky, the ocean, and mountains. It’s absolutely gorgeous. The photo makes me feel optimistic and hopeful. There is also a person standing out there on a float-pad. It’s a metaphor of where I am. There is a sea of possibilities and I am looking for my alignment. After writing my last blog entry, Back Here Again, I ended the blog looking forward to the next 12-weeks. I am transition. My daughter is back to school. And, I am in the driver seat to figure out what’s next for me. Admittedly, it’s an odd feeling when my lifetime goal was to complete a PhD. Now that it’s done, it’s time for new goals.

I did not realize the process post-dissertation. My oral defence was on August 17th, I submitted my revisions on August 18th, and they were approved on August 21st. I submitted my final draft to the SFU library online on August 21st. On September 7th, my thesis intake was completed by the SFU Library and TODAY, September 12th, the “Senate has awarded [my] degree of Doctor or Education.” Convocation is on Friday, October 6th. I can’t wait. This break is good timing nonetheless. I started teaching at SFU-Burnaby Campus on Friday mornings and I used this time to reflect to figure out what’s next.

When I was doing my dissertation, thinking about what’s next was a distractor. It took time and effort to think about what’s next and not to think about it. I had to do the latter to focus on my research, get things off my plate (even though I may have loved doing certain things), and complete my dissertation. Mission accomplished. Now, I feel like I’m trying to force something to happen. This is not a good place… because, nothing happens. I was reminded by my friend today, hence the inspiration to blog, that SERENDIPITY plays a role in what’s next. Whether if you know it or not, everything that you do is aligning itself to what’s next. You have to allow it to happen and LET GO.

What I mean by “let go” is not a passive role of “doing nothing” or “hoping for the best.” It’s bigger than that. You just can’t force things to happen. And if you do, it was not meant to happen and it’s doomed for failure. Alignment is key to making things happen… but letting things happen. You have to do what is within your reach and works towards what you want or intend to do. When I look back… and I’m looking way back… I find it odd how everything I have done forms a straight line to where I am. At the time, it may have felt like chaos, incongruent, and uncertain… but now I see it was meant to be. You have no idea when one relationship, one project, or one event can transform your life.

I am humbled by serendipity. I am also humbled by TRUST and intuition. Sometimes you have to listen and do what you believe is the right thing to do even though you may have no clue where it’s heading. That’s OK. This is another form of letting go. You don’t have to know. As long as it feels good and you’re aligned to that person, direction, or way of being… then do it. Misalignment takes work to maintain and for what purpose? What feels right for me for the next 12-weeks is to continue writing academically and write articles to be published. I also need to complete another study I am working on and write that paper up. Finally, I need to complete writing my CV, educational philosophy, and cover letters and apply for jobs. I’m at a new beginning. It’s time to apply and publish.