Spent Midsummer in Kelujärvi with the family. Amazed at the fast growth of the wild flowers in the field. I tried walking through the wild flower field to get closer to some birds, but found it tough to do. They reached up to my calf and some were even came higher than my knees. It was wonderful to see the different colours of flowers and different types of leaves and stalks and branches in a huge field. Have you ever tried touching the flowers and the stalks and leaves, tracing them with your fingertips in order to feel their textures? I've just recently tried doing so and I find it fascinating. It's a whole different thing compared to just admiring them by sight. The Lord is such a magnificent artist to be able to create all of them in their separate glories...my goodness what beauty!
It became even more beautiful with the lack of traffic sounds. The orchestra of the singing birds could be heard from far away without any distraction. It was such bliss to be able to sit down on the porch stairs and tilt my head backwards to watch the clouds rolling above in the sky. And when it got rainy outside, I could still enjoy watching the lovely butterflies in the field from the huge living room window. There were so many tiny fluttering wings out there that you could just not miss them! Amazing!
It rained during the night last night and when I peeked outside before I went to bed, I was awestruck with the sight of those translucent natural pearls sitting on top of the leaves and flower petals. It made me want to sing this song. Praise the Lord for the wonders of His creation!
When I first started working in my current workplace, I was really unsure about my ability. The only thing that made me even think of sending an application there was the words someone said to me. She said she believed I was ready to work in a place like that. She was helping us at the Finnish course. She taught us how to send applications, how to make a CV in Finnish and how to find jobs online and things like that. Without her encouragement, I don't think I would have found the courage to send the application letter. :-D
Another thing I was unsure about was the fact that I wasn't a people person and I had zero experience in the field. Would I survive in that kind of environment? On the other hand, I wanted to be able to use my Finnish actively so that it wouldn't get rusty. The first few months in my current workplace were rough. I was really wondering whether or not I should continue. I wasn't even sure that they'd renew my contract (the first contract was only for 3 months). After getting the permanent job contract, I was thinking that I would only be able to continue working in this kind of place for 2 years max. Seriously.
Until I started getting to know the workplace, my workload, and the product range better. Until some customers started giving me feedback that made me believe that this was/is the right place for me (that's why I'm forever grateful to all those people who've given me verbal feedback and words of encouragement because they're God's angels on earth).
I knew my limitations from the start. Other than the language, one other limit is my height (I'm only 145 cm). There are some things that my taller coworkers can do better and faster than me. And because they're native Finns, naturally they're able to explain things better pronto (compared to myself who needs more time to think of a way to explain things that I've never encountered before). And if a new problem occurs, they know better whom to call and what to do and how to explain it to the customers or the boss.
In the beginning, whenever someone asked me a question that I couldn't answer, I always called my coworker to help out. Over the past 2 years and 4 months I've learnt to pick up words and phrases from my coworkers and customers and that's helped me respond more "automatically" in similar circumstances. As to my height, there's nothing I can do about it, but at least there's a stool at work that I can use whenever I need it. :-D
Luckily the coworkers and bosses I've met and worked with have been nice and fair people. They've never treated me differently despite the fact that sometimes when they talk so fast, I still ask them to repeat the words to me. There are still some occasions when I also need my customers to explain what they need from me, especially if they use strange words that I'm not familiar with, but at least my face helps make them understand that I'm a foreigner and that they may need to use more "regular" words and even body language when they talk to me.
Having worked in this kind of place for the first time in my life makes me realize even more that one cannot please everyone. I still make mistakes every now and then, though I try to minimize them. Some customers may feel more satisfied than others, some may be more willing to forgive than others, but it's a wonderful journey to learn to forgive myself, too. To let go of my mistakes instead of dragging them like balls of chain on my ankles. To focus more on what I can do and to try finding ways to work more efficiently and to be more sensitive towards my customers' needs as best as I can.
After all, this is a gift/opportunity that God has entrusted to me in such a miraculous way. If He hadn't slammed other doors right in front of me back in 2010 (that had caused some depression for a while), I wouldn't have bothered to try looking for real jobs. Instead, I would have been "satisfied" being in my comfort zone where I wouldn't have learnt all these lessons. THANK YOU, Lord, for everything!!!
Have no time today to do anything much. My darling crazy (that's a compliment as we're both crazy) husband decided to throw a surprise at me late last night. I knew we were going to enjoy barbecue at my in-laws today, but I thought it'd be done later, right after he went home from work. When we almost fell asleep (literally), he turned and said to me with an evil grin, "I should tell you something. I don't have to work tomorrow." I was STUNNED! I asked him if it meant that we were going to my in-laws in the morning. He said yes. Oh dear goodness! He said his initial intention was to surprise me in the morning, by lying down beside me when I woke up (usually he wakes up earlier than me to go to work while sleepyhead me still enjoys the dreamland). Then I stared at him in disbelief and said, "I don't know whether to poke your eyes or hug you." He laughed. Naturally I did the latter, not the former. LOL!!!
So, Dwight and Max, I'll get back to you on my promises after I get back home, OK?
And Max's tagged me back for the award, even though I'm not sure it's legal????? I was under the impression that people who had been tagged couldn't be tagged back, but inspired by Vic's post entitled Learning to Accept Praise (and Other Good Things in Life), I THANK Max for tagging me back with his kind words:
"I like the sweet and tender fashion in which she posts events of her life, her opinion about things, her deepest feelings! There's something sincere about her that makes us belive that the world is not so fake after all! You've been tagged before, however you win another award for the category "Best Leading Kindness"!"
I TRULY appreciate your words, Max. Another one of the best compliments I've ever received. :-))))
I think since yesterday it's been a perfect day for me. I want to salute the person who initiated the award, simply because it's basically sharing joys with others and thus enabling me to double my joys. MANY thanks to that person (will someone tell me who that person is and I'll link him/her here? I have no time today to search) and also again to Michelle for having tagged me (enabling me to share the award). My cup absolutely runneth over now. :-))))
Anyway, today's a SUNNY day. YAAAAYYYYYY!!! What more can a girl expect? Hmmm...Can I cheat now and just pick one blog to give an award to, now that I've been tagged back? Somebody tell me, pretty, please? He he he he...LOL!!! 'Coz I want to give the award to Michelle (Crow's Feet) as she's been inspirational, informative, and soul-beautiful in her posts (borrowing her own term "soul-beautiful" in her post In The Image of God).
OK, time to pack as we're gonna spend a night at my in-laws. Here I come, countryside, birds, flowers, sky, sunshine, lake, foooooddddd!!! Enjoy your weekend, everybody!!!
P.S. Almost forgot...just wanna share this silly fun clip to make you smile as it made me giggle yesterday. Go here: Winners.
P.P.S. OK, now I've decided to share just one Thinking Blogger Award to Crow's Feet. She doesn't need to find 5 other blogs as she's already done it in Kombai. I just want her to know that I appreciate her and she was the one who made me feel mushy-mushy first he he he...
CONGRATULATIONS on having made a difference in my life, Michelle!!! Here's your Award:
