Well, I didn’t get the job I applied for.

They chose the gal who speaks fluent Spanish over me. I would have made the same decision in hiring if I were in the director’s position. We had a lovely chat about my profound over-qualification for the position I had applied for and where I might be able to volunteer with the program over the next few months.

All around, this experience was positive, even if not in the way I had originally planned.

I want to address something that is crucial to the process and the final success or failure of these life changing endeavors. The people who will have to live with your insanity until you get to a stable point. These people will be your team. I am finding my relationships are changing as I start to work on this project in a more concentrated manner. I have found that three important relationships have solidified themselves.

I now have a very definite mentor, a cheerleader, and of course, the wind beneath my wings. I know I am going to need my team early and often for the ups and downs over the next few years. These people who will listen for the one millionth time about how excited I am about every little new thing I am learning, every lesson, in every subject. And again, six months from now, when I am all tears about how much homework I have and how much I would rather go to the local brew pub for weinerschnitzel than list one more protocol for respiratory illness.

I was chatting with a mom in our homeschool co-op and mentioned, “Geesh, someday I really should just write a book on healthy eating from the herbal and fermented side for singles and couples.”

She piped up with, “Well, why don’t you? I am doing a challenge this year to write 300 words a day. Every day.”

Hmm, well, I can do that, surely 300 words is like half a page, or less. OK, so what is the goal? A manuscript ready to go into first revisions? Sure. And away we went.

We now have a third member of our little writing group. All of us sitting down at some point during the day to blob, not blog - blob, a minimum of 300 words a day. Every. Single. Day.

So, as I sit here writing this at 23:37, in another 23 minutes the counter ticks back and I have to write another 300 words. If I am still writing on this blob in 23 minutes, I will have to continue for another 300 words in tomorrow’s slot, or I can finish this thought and start a new one tomorrow. But, I have to write a minimum of 300 words. Every day.

This wonderful woman, and her silly 300 words, is my mentor. She is always there asking if I wrote yet. Now that I am writing for you wonderful readers too, she is even more excited for our 300 words project.

My cheerleader came in the form of a friend who has asked me to write for her before and the universe got in the way. This time, I had newly started on my journey to go back to school and redefine my life again, when she asked again if I would write about it for this blog. I call her my cheerleader because I am totally new at this whole online blog thing. I read a few, and the thought crossed my mind that a blog might be a good fit for how I want to get my information out, but I have never written one.

I need someone to help me through this new technology and style. I am timid when it comes to doing things right the first time. Her belief in me at the other end of the web from the other side of the planet gives me the confidence to set forth what I write for you all to read. So again, I thank you my readers, for being guinea pigs and helping me prove to myself that this is a viable option for my future.

Do you have a smaller version or related side project that you can dovetail into your schooling to test the waters? Who can help you start that?

The wind beneath my wings, the one and only, my husband. But then - what if you don’t happen to have a conveniently uber supportive live-in best friend who is willing to try any concoction you come up with, read any junk you write? Find one. That person is the one you will call at three in the morning when you are in tears because you just cannot possibly see a way to make this actually work and you are watching your dreams crumble before your very eyes. And, they will make you tea and bring you a blanket and tell you to suck it up. Doesn’t have to be your life partner. I’m lucky that way. But there is one person out there who is as excited as you are about this new you that you are embracing and they want you to succeed with every fiber of their being as much as you want to.

Make it a formal project for yourself to identify your team. Know who you will go to when the going gets tough or when there is an unexpected stumbling block. You may have more team members than I do. I am sure I will find more people who fit in this team for me as I go down this road.

And that beats 300 words.