Another Inspiring Talk with Mom (all sarcasm intended)

I've been learning these past couple of months what it means to be a young twenty -something, soon-to-be-graduating, on-the-verge-of-career-searching college student. It's good to have financial support. It's good to have connections. It's good to have a picture perfect resume, a knack for talking about yourself, a cheery misdemeanor, a sky high GPA. Yeah, that's all well and good. But what happens when you realize what you're lacking you can't really fix? No student loans, no career services, no resume doctor, and no amount of tutors can help you out on this one. There is no greater feeling than that of feeling alone, something I talk about countless times throughout my blog. Sometimes, all you really need is someone to believe in you. Someone to tell you that all you're doing is worth it. Someone to mean it, and preferably the people whose opinions matter the most. I wish more than anything for my parents to be able to understand how much what I do means to me. I learned pretty early on in college that I could no longer run to my mom with all the exciting happy things that happened in my life, especially if it involved anything to do with my career. I knew that she would never understand. And I knew that I could never make her. It's hard to shake off comments like, "if you think that then you're going to make a bad social worker" or "well, I guess somebody's gotta do it" when I tell her about the most meaningful and exciting parts of my day. It's a pretty huge blow to your self-esteem hearing stuff like that, especially in this fragile state of sheer uncertainty. However, I've started using these comments as motivation. To spite her. Because it's my life and if she doesn't care to have a positive say then she doesn't get a say at all. I guess it's about generating your own emotional foundation when all of your previous supports have crumbled to the ground.