A Winnipeg girl is growing up

It’s funny how quickly life can change...

One day I was a second-year college student focusing all of my time and energy on assignments, grades and time management.

The next day I became a recently graduated communicator with unlimited possibilities and the time to explore what I want to do with myself for the next 30 years.

It hasn’t been easy. Saying goodbye to my classmates and instructors the last day of class felt like I was parting with family. I know that I will see those I love often, and everyone is only a phone call, Facebook message or Twitter post away. But after spending every day with the same people for two years, I can’t help but feel like a small piece of my heart is gone.

It has also been difficult deciding what to do next. For the first months of my last year of school, my boyfriend and I had planned to move to Japan to teach English for a year after I graduated. Travel complications and the recent natural disaster destroyed that plan, leaving me with literally unlimited time on my hands.

I decided that finding something short-term would be the best way to recover from the quick change of plans, and in March I accepted a term position with MPI as a Community Relations Assistant. As a result, my summer months will be spent travelling around the province and giving presentations on bike and road safety. The job is fantastic, and after two weeks of work I’ve already fallen in love with it.

And then, last Sunday, I accepted a second term position…

Meet the new Audience Development Coordinator & Publicist for the Winnipeg International Writers’ Festival (more commonly called "Thin Air"). Not only will I be in charge of publicity and communications, but I will also be coordinating and overseeing each writer featured in the festival. This means I will be spending time with published authors who love what they do.

Anyone who knows me well will automatically understand that this is my dream job. It will also provide me with the entrance to the literary world that I’ve wanted for years.

This is a pic of me at my book launch in March. It was honestly one of the best moments of my life, and I hope that working for Thin Air will help bring me one step closer to my goal of becoming a successful author.

Needless to say, it’s going to be a busy summer. I don’t know what I will do after I finish both contracts in October, and I will once again find myself with unlimited time to do whatever I want. Maybe I’ll find a full-time job, another term, or maybe I’ll go travelling.

For now, I’m trying to enjoy each and every day until my life changes again…