My first day at work, after 15 months without a full time job

This is the letter I wrote to Glo about my first day and week of work, hope it is interesting to you dear reader.

Hola Glo!  Como estás?  Espero que todo esté bien!  Te amamos y pedimos a nuestro padre celestial por tí y tu compañera cada día!

Hey Glo,  I started my new job this week!  Hooray!  I am so thankful!  Thanks for all your prayers and all your love and concern.  I was kind of worried because I got approved for work last Friday, and I needed my contract and then I had to sign it and then two other people from Beaumont had to sign it.  Monday came and went and no contract, Tuesday came and until 4 pm no contract, but it finally came to me at 4 pm.  So I signed it and then to actually start getting paid I had to wait till two other people signed it.  Wednesday morning came and one of the people finally signed it but at like 3 pm the other person still had not signed it and I was worried another day would pass without a signature, but around 3:30 the other person signed it and I was official.  I did my orientation that day and it went well.  I actually got emotional when the guy was giving me orientation because he was explaining all this stuff that I never got informed of at my previous job and I was just really grateful I was being informed and supported.  

So, I was told I would be on labor and delivery on Thursday morning at 7 am.  I have to admit I was a little worried because I did not know what that would be like.  So, I showed up and it was crazy.  There were about 20 people on labor and delivery, the residents who were coming on, the residents who were leaving, all the nurses who were taking care of the patients and medical students and so many patients.  But after report was done, we had 2 cesarean sections scheduled and I got to do them with the residents and they went great!  The first one was a twin cesarean section on an obese woman and it went very well.  The second one was on an obese woman with multiple previous cesarean sections who was also obese but it went well too.  Then, it was 12 pm and there was another one to do and so I stayed and did that one too and it was a repeat c/s on a very heavy woman but it too went very well.  It made me feel like a real doctor again.  That afternoon I went to the resident clinic and learned how we staff it, and then the next day on Friday morning I was in resident clinic again and I staffed it with another doctor and it went well.  Then, I got called to go help staff 5 circumcisions with a first year resident.  Here name was Joana and she was a 5 foot 10" asian girl who did a great job but it was interesting to meet such a tall asian woman.  I told her about you and Johannah being tall girls and she could relate.  

At lunch time Dr. Maxwell my boss and I took an African doctor who is interviewing for a job with us to lunch in the cafeteria and it went well I thought.  He is married and his wife came and I think I hit it off with them pretty well.  After that was done, I went home and got home about 415 on Friday afternoon.  

It turns out, I am on call from home about 4-5 days per month.  I cover labor and delivery a few half days a week and I cover the ER one day a week.  The rest of the time I am in my office and in the resident clinic.  But amazingly, I only cover labor and delivery with all of that craziness about 4 half days per month.  

On Thursday, I asked about moving expenses and coverage because Mommy and I do not want to move ourselves from the storage units to the house in Northville.  My work had said since it was not more than 50 miles away we might not get the move paid for but on Friday I found out we get our move paid for, we get our rent for February paid for and that is so great!  What a relief we get that stuff paid for.  And we get moving help.  Yay!  

The mortgage guy says we can close on the house at the end of February and with the money from my new job and the money from the Geisinger job I am working part time, we should have plenty of money to close on the house and pay off our bills.  

I have to say Glo, it is miraculous how well things are going right now.  By Friday this coming week we will have a great amount of money in our account.  I have a good job that I have to say seems like a good way of life and doing something that I already enjoy, we are getting moving help, rent help, storage unit help and we have a really nice house we are moving into.  On top of all of that, we still get to serve in the temple twice a week and we feel so happy there and are treated so well there by all our temple friends.  More importantly, you are serving a faithful mission you love, Johannah is doing really well, and has a good job, is working hard at school and has lots of friends.  Mark and Allison are doing well,  they are working hard and school is going well for them and they seem happy at church.  Ethan, Rebecca, Baby and Brother as so cute and good and they seem to be so happy.  Mommy and I are feeling so much better with some positive direction in our life.  I am so thankful!  

Its interesting Glo, I really feel like a testimony has been driven into me of relying on God and his arm rather than the arm of the flesh or the world.  Heavenly Father helped us get this job, get the part time good paying work in Pennsylvania,  we found the house we like, we got help from him to make it financially till we started getting paid again, and through all the troubles, we have been able to go to the temple and feel his spirit and feel comforted.  

At times I have wanted more support from the people in our ward and stake, but I have to say Glo, I feel like where people have not been there for me in a way, Heavenly Father himself and Jesus have been there for me.  Where I could not make money to support my family on my own, with God's help, I am making significant progress on getting back to a good place financially.  I am really grateful and astounded.  I feel like words can't express to any adequate degree how I see God's hand in my life,  and yet I feel it so strongly, but it did not come easily or without a lot of pain and suffering.  

In the temple Adam and Eve say how without a knowledge of good and evil they could not know the glory of their salvation and I can really relate to that.  The other day I felt like I should read the entire book of job so I did and I could really relate to how Job felt: kind of trapped between having faith and knowing God was there, but at the same time being so unhappy he wanted to die and wished he had never been born.  He was trapped in the middle, feeling both ways.  I can relate to him.  

I hesitate to feel too happy because I am scared something is going to happen to end the good stuff going on or affecting it in some way, but I am so thankful for all the help from Heavenly Father and Jesus.

Hope this makes sense and you can know how much I love Heavenly Father.

Con amor!

Papá