El Día Laboral - The Workday

Work is part of life and for some, it is a four letter word, while for others, it is something to do in order to pay the bills, feed that family and provide comfort.  For still others, it is a source of compulsion, a measure of self worth, or a means to an end. I am not adverse to hard work and have changed my attitude towards work as I have gotten older.  I certainly enjoy my work now, and try and look for opportunities to change, learn and problem solve in my work everyday.  I do enjoy my time off, but now it seems like work has taken center stage in my life, and I am OK with that. As my Father-in-law said to me once, "Without work, there would be no leisure time. Work defines leisure time as leisure time is when you are not working".  

Here in Santiago, I am involved now in my work, and have set out to work in a new location in a new country in a new time zone in a new language.  It is fresh and new, exciting and intimidating, a welcomed change from the routine.  There are a number of marketed differences for me at this time, such as I walk to work, I don't have a car, and I use public transportation a lot.  I look at new sites each and everyday, even street signs become something exotic and interesting as I walk to work. The people are different and my wonderful colleagues at UMCE are knowledgeable, intelligent and stimulating.

Yet, in some ways, work is work, in that I have to get up around 6 AM and have some quiet time, make it to the gym at 7 AM to workout, then shower, eat breakfast and head into the office. At the office, I get behind a computer and work on tasks that resemble the work I do at UTEP (albeit now in Spanish primarily), such as designing evaluation instruments, planning classroom curriculum, working with students, meeting with colleagues, updating Web sites and sending emails.  After the day is over, I head out from the office and head home, where I will find my wonderful wife Sarah, and we will have dinner and talk about our days as we have for almost 20 years.

The point to all of this, well I guess it is that no matter where you are, there are some routines, some self-imposed and others imposed upon you. Yet, it is important to remember that it is not the product of your work that is important, it is the process of your work and the interactions you have each and everyday.