Everything Goes Right

So I got an interview for that job I really wanted, and the interview went pretty well. Then I got the call the next day that said, "We were really impressed by you, but we decided to go with someone else." Cue the crappy day. Everything felt like it had all gone backwards all of a sudden. I felt like I just kept hitting setbacks with the three major aspects of my life: career, relationships, and spirituality. So I called my mom to vent and cry on her shoulder.

In true, wonderful form, my mother offered comfort and perspective. When I said that I was tired of things going wrong, she said the words I'll never forget: "When you rely on the Lord, nothing goes wrong. Things sometimes seem to be taking a step backwards, but everything is going right." And my dad, in a text message today, said, "Someday you'll look back and say 'I'm glad it didn't work out.'"

And to be quite honest, I can actually say that I am glad that things don't always work out. Perhaps that job would have gotten in the way of a better opportunity. Or maybe it wasn't everything I thought it would be, and I'd be less satisfied than I am with my current job. My career is in very capable hands right now (not mine!) and I'm not that worried about it, even though the initial rejection sucked.

As for the other things in life, my mom reminded me that I haven't hit any setbacks with the spiritual goals I've set. In fact, my preparation for the temple seems to be rocketing forward at an almost alarming speed. That goal is zooming up on me, while I've just gotten a calling that will be both challenging and rewarding.

And relationships.

There are so many sides to that word. My roommate and I are working through some issues that have come up recently, because we care too much about each other to let them drive us apart. I've spent long nights talking to Stephanie and falling in love with having her as a roommate, because we're both learning so much from each other. I've made some awesome new friends, and gotten a taste of the kind of chemistry and interaction that makes all previous heartbreaks totally worth it. Whether or not anything grows with any one particular person, it doesn't matter. I've been treated well by people who didn't have to take two and a half months to get to know me.

Oh, and my dad wanted to know when I finished finals, so that he could buy tickets for me and Brian at Christmastime, and he's coming up for my cousin's wedding in two weeks. So I get to see my father within the month, and going home to see my family for Christmas is a definite occurrence instead of just a highly likely possibility.

Setbacks, real or imagined, are very rarely true setbacks. Instead, they are stepping stones that move us ever forward. I look back at everything that I've had in the last six or seven months, everything I've gone through, everything I've learned, and I wouldn't undo a single thing. Yes, I miss some things. Yes, some things hurt a lot. But I wouldn't undo any of them. As my mom said, even the wrong things go right.