Times and Seasons

I am a firm believer in times and seasons in life. There will be times of growth, progress, and hope and there will be times of enduring, clinging, and waiting, and if you are extra lucky, those 2 types of seasons will intersect! Let me tell you about some of my recent seasons.

In May of 2021, I took a job at a small hospital-based clinic in Sierra Vista (if you don't know where that is, you aren't the only one). It was my first time living by myself, away from my community of family and friends, and in a place not known for any kind of young adult social scene. But I excelled! I was making really good and healthy home cooked meals (it is not an exaggeration that being able to cook for myself was my biggest worry about leaving home), I was exercising and training for small races, I stopped taking anxiety and depression medication after 5 to 10 years of use (with approval from my healthcare provider), and I was enjoying being able to have my own space. But then, without warning or 1 big catalyst, my season of excitement, independence, and thriving ended and a new uncertain season started in March of 2022. I won't go into details, but I will say that despite doing everything that I knew to do to be healthy in spirit, mind, and body, something wasn't right. So back on medication I went (with 1 less medication and lower doses than before) because I was self-aware enough to know that I needed to stabilize in order to function and I started seeing a therapist. It was not until I started seeing my counselor that I realized just how lonely I was. This figurative Winter left me with 2 options; I could stay in Sierra Vista and finish another year of my contract, or I could try to find a job that would allow me to relocate back to the Valley where my support system was. So with hope, I started searching for a new job.

After applying to multiple jobs, I found and interviewed for 2 options that seemed feasible. One was with a home health agency that I worked for prior to moving to Sierra Vista and another was with a clinic-based company in Scottsdale. I knew that if I needed to do home health again, if only to get back to Phoenix, I could, but that was not where I wanted to be. So, after praying and reflecting, I took the Scottsdale job. I felt good about it and I didn't hear God saying no, so I went for it. I moved back home and started as a pediatric physical therapist in Scottdale in June of 2022 after an expensive move (sign on bonus repayment, lease cancelling, etc), a trip to Kenya that had been planned way before I knew about the move, and HR shenanigans. But even though I felt good about the opportunity, I didn't feel like it was going to last. I remember that in June or July someone sent out a birthday buddies sheet for me to fill out and while I was interested in participating, I just never felt the need to get around to it (also, in my defense, my birthday is not until January, so I figured I had time anyway). My workload consisted of 3 patients per week and since I was being paid per patient, you can imagine that even though I was blessed to be living at home (thanks Mom and Dad!), my financial situation was undesirable. It was so bad that I started to think about drive sharing or food delivering to supplement my income, at which point my counselor reminded me that I had a doctorate and could/should probably find employment that reflected my expertise and education. Now this season was hard financially, but I found lots of blessings in this time. For example, I started attending the temple weekly in order to worship and commune with God. I was able to learn more about my Savior as I studied the Gospel through the Old Testament. I completed puzzles, binge-watched shows that made me laugh, tried online dating (that is a topic for another time), and participated in over 20 gym classes in 30 days (and no, I sadly did not win the gift card). My brain/nervous system started healing and I started feeling like pre-March Dannette again.

I am grateful that I was at pre-March Dannette functioning, because it made the coming (short) season change a little easier to weather. You see, during the August 30th clinic meeting we learned that the clinic would be closing (we won't talk about how it took me 20 minutes into the conversation to figure out that I was being laid off; it was definitely one of my finer blonde moments). If you are like some of my friends, you might be righteously indignant for me. I mean I had JUST relocated for this job. Or you might be confused and think, "why would God allow Dannette to choose this path, only to find her laid off within months of starting?". Well the short answer is: Kids Place.

When I was a physical therapy student, I completed a rotation at Kids Place in Phoenix and I LOVED it. I learned a ton and met amazing clinicians. I knew I wanted to get back there some day, but they were never hiring (I don't know about you, but I hate it when the company you want to work for has low turn-over because no one wants to leave). In fact, when I reached out in March with my resume, they urged me to check back in in the Fall because they were not hiring at the time. Well, guess who checked back in in August/September, THIS girl! The interview went really well and what struck me as amazing was the fact that they were not actively trying to hire anyone full time but because they liked me, they were going to make it happen. Looking back, I can see that it turned out exactly as it needed to. So now in this season of beginnings, I am working full time, in a pediatric-based clinic in Goodyear, with brilliant minds and decades of combined experience. My boxes have been checked and I am eager to see what awaits. We just won't talk about the commute, but at least I can confidently say that the job is worth it!

I am so grateful for the seasons that I have experienced in the last 6 months (which realistically have felt like at LEAST a year). Even though there were hard parts, scary parts, worried parts, humbling parts, and uncertain parts, they were equally matched, if not surpassed, by the happy parts, laughing parts, adventure parts, persevering parts, and confidence-building parts. I am grateful that I have seen God's hand in ALL of the seasons and that his ways and plans ALWAYS work out better than the ones I make for myself. I would not want to go through the seasons of my life without HIm.