Today we went to visit folks at Casa de Manana. I had the pleasure of speaking to a man in his 90s who was involved in the US Navy for most of his life. During my time there, Edward shared with me his rich life experiences. I learned that he traveled to many parts of the world and worked various positions in his life, most of which were related to education. He also shared with us his passion for photography and how he once considered being a photographer for National Geographic. It was really interesting to hear about Edward's experiences growing up in Hawaii and how it was almost a given that he would follow his father's footsteps of going into the military. I'm glad I was able to spend time with Edward and share bits and pieces of my life with him and vice versa. In the midst of our discussion, Edward talked to us about career prospects as many of us are graduating seniors. I think it was at this moment that I realized how different the job market is for us now compared to back then. In response to many of us telling him that we did not yet have jobs lined up for post-graduation, Edward replied that we "better hop on it." I know he didn't mean harm with that comment, but it definitely induced a lot of stress and anxiety for me at the moment. I don't know if older folks understand the employment struggle a lot of people in my generation are currently experiencing, but it is a very disheartening process, to say the least. I am not sure if people think that we're just being "lazy," but I can personally attest that this is not the case. Encountering job listings for entry-level positions that require bilingualism and years of experience while compensating with salaries that are barely over minimum wage has left me feeling like my Bachelor's degree and years of hard work in higher education are virtually worth nothing. To top it off, people simply scrape up our lack of employment to the fact that we simply are not trying hard enough. Sorry if this seemed like a vent, but it has been quite a stressful quarter trying to finish up my degree, working part-time and trying to find a full-time job post-graduation. I feel happy for older folks because they did not have to work so hard to find a job back in their days, but times are different now and I just wish more people understood that.
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Grace TranWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
June 2019
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