At the end of my husband’s two-mile commute to work, he arrives at a large, red, barn-shaped building at the rear of an office park. A bronze heron, legs trailing as though in flight, rests upon the weather vane atop the cupola on the barn’s roof. As he enters the building, he is surrounded by natural wood—knotty white pine floors, white-washed pine paneling, and cherry desks and tables. Suspended above the stairwell to his right hangs a flying turkey mount, a trophy from a Kansas hunting trip with his father. Windows in the conference room offer a view of the brook flowing quietly behind the building.
When my husband entered college, his intention was to pursue a degree in forestry or wildlife management. As a boy, he spent as much time as possible in the out-of-doors, developing a passion for hiking, hunting and fishing. He spent his summers working for the Youth Conservation Corps, building and maintaining trails, bridges, and dams. These experiences shaped his desire
for a career rooted in a love of outdoors, such as in the National Park Service.
My husband’s freshman adviser, however, dashed those dreams by painting a bleak picture of career opportunities within his chosen field. Openings for park rangers, he said, typically occurred only through the deaths of those holding the positions. My husband’s adviser steered him instead toward the field of environmental engineering, one in which he has worked for more than thirty years.
I’m joining the conversation over at The High Calling where, this week, we’ve been talking about beauty in the workplace. Would love for you to click here to read the rest of this story.
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