by Paige Doherty. February 28th, 2020

When I was little, I used to go boogie boarding with my dad.

He taught me that waves come in sets. Clutching my foam board, I'd wait for the inevitable tug at my ankles that signaled the first wave was coming. I'd plop myself down on the board and run along the sand to catch that first wave. When the first wave faded, the momentum from the waves behind it in the set would push me on to the shore. I'd emerge from the shore, victorious and covered in sand & plow my way back to deeper waters.

It was between the sets where I learned to wholly appreciate the ocean - spotting different shells, the occasional shimmer of a fish, dodging slimy tendrils of seaweed. It gave me time to soak up the small details. Amidst the rush of catching waves, I felt at peace.

I thought deeply about this while journalling on the beach this past week - about life between sets.

I've just come off a long, long set - a journey that looked like this:

I've worked an internship in a corporate setting since I was 17. I spent three years at Northrop Grumman & the past ten months at TVC Capital, a B2B-software focused growth equity firm. I've spent my entire college career in and out of offices.

And I have loved it. The work that I did became so tied to my idea of my identity. It was the first thing off my tongue when someone asked about me. This semester, my class schedule didn't allow for me to work at TVC anymore.

I told everyone that I was excited to have a break after working so hard, but the truth was - I was nervous. Who would I be without...work? I caught myself switching tenses to " used to.." and would feel a slight twinge.