It’s not the end of the world. It’s just another day depending on grace.”

Matthew West

Today (Wednesday) was my last day at work, and honestly, it was pretty great. Unexpectedly, my boss decided that we should finish a project that has been on hold for a few months, and it was fun to work with the whole team to complete the task. Our work today was jovial and lighthearted; I really couldn’t have asked for a better way to end my job at the university.

Yet, as I walked down the stairs to leave the building for the last time, I felt my eyes growing wet — and it wasn’t from the freezing rain. No, it was because I realized that I have finished this leg of the race. The seven-year sprint is done.

When I first came to this university as an 18-year-old freshman, I was terrified of college life because everything was so new — the buildings, the people, the classes, the policies…. During that first week, I choked back so many tears that my throat constantly hurt (thankfully, this was in the pre-COVID era).

Now, after 4 years as a student and 3 years as an employee, I am choking back tears for the opposite reason — I will miss everything that is familiar. The buildings, people, and policies that were once terrifying are now comfortable. The same professors and staff that used to intimidate me have become my faithful colleagues, and I will miss them greatly.

I am a little sad that I won’t return to the university tomorrow to build data visualizations, but I am so thankful for the ways that God used that school to sanctify me. In His time, He turned something scary into something beautiful.

Tomorrow will be strange as I start the next leg of the race, but really, it will be “just another day depending on grace,” and I am thankful that God always gives the grace we need!