Now what?

After seven years of gainful employment here, I was notified today that I am being layed off. Hmm...my first thought was "what??" and my second thought was "what now?" What does this mean to me and what will it mean for our family? Anytime you put your energy into work, hobbies, church assignments, parenting, or whatever, it's not just what you do but becomes part of who you are. Now who am I? True, we shouldn't define our lives by our work, but as long as working was necessary, I took pride in what I did, made the best of it, contributed value to the company, and yes even enjoyed it.

These days it's so commonplace to hear of layoffs. But believe me, when it's YOU, it's anything but commonplace. Today I allowed myself to just wallow. Tomorrow I'll get up and decide what to do next. I'll learn something from this, as is the case with trials, but for now I'm in a bit of a tailspin, looking for a soft place to land. Thankfully, I can find that very thing at home...a husband's shoulder to cry on, a special boy's infectious laugh and a sweet baby's warm cuddle. Even with the uncertainty in the road ahead, I'll sleep well tonight.