One Year Later

One year ago today The McDonald Gang was at the top of our game. Nigel had just turned 2; Tim had completed his master's degree, was recently promoted and was expecting yet another promotion; and I had lost 40lbs and completed a 10k just days earlier.

Our life changed in a matter of minutes. Nigel and I were taking a morning walk in Forest Hill Park when Tim called to tell me he'd just been laid off; he was being escorted out of the building. At first, I thought he was kidding. But it quickly became apparent that this was no early April Fool's joke.

I put Nigel back in the stroller and stumbled home in a fog. My mind was both racing and numb. Despite all of the talk of layoffs and downsizing and unemployment in the news, never in my life did I think this would happen to us. (Tim later told me he saw the writing on the wall almost as soon as he got into the office that morning and noticed he wasn't scheduled to attend a meeting with the rest of his team later in the day.)

When Tim came home a few hours later, we talked and discussed our options. Yes, it was going to be a challenge, but it was also a chance for a new beginning.

I've always been in awe of Tim's work ethic and dedication to Nigel and me, but he really amazed me during those months following the loss of his job. He immediately went to work tweaking his resume and applying for jobs. He even took on temporary work, including door-to-door U.S. Census work. Was it all smooth sailing and argument free? Of course not. There was a lot of frustration. Often times, Tim would never hear a peep from the jobs he applied to. Or when he did have an interview, he wouldn't hear back for weeks — if at all. (Ironically, the job that Tim has now — the one he started in September that made us Forth Worth-bound — he applied to the day after he was laid off.) And since we were exploring jobs in various states, we were constantly reading up on life in different parts of the country. But where Tim was finding numerous jobs to apply to and getting a fair number of interviews, my efforts simply netted one phoner. There just weren't many options for me... especially options with salaries high enough to warrant moving to another state. Fortunately, my freelance work was picking up at the time so I felt like I was contributing a bit.

And honestly, some of the feedback — or lack thereof — we got from friends and and family was frustrating. Some people thought we were jumping the gun by looking for out-of-state employment so soon out of the gate. Others didn't understand why we each couldn't land minimum-wage jobs. I can understand the concern, but I think most people realize now that if we had stayed in RVA we would have been on the street by now. Even after Tim took his current gig here in TX, he continued to get calls for interviews — and one offer — for jobs in other states. None in VA. As for additional temporary employment, that's harder to get than people think. Tim even tried to get PT manual labor work (he has a background in construction), but couldn't land any. Employers see someone with a master's in econ as someone who requires more pay and isn't in it for the long haul. And if we both had somehow managed to land minimum-wage work, it all would have gone to pay for Nigel's care while we were at said minimum-wage jobs. All in all, though, people were supportive. It really showed us just how many people care about us and who we can really count on, as noted here.

Fast forward one year, and we have emerged like a group of lotus from that icky mud. Tim loves his new job. His boss regularly gives him feedback, and there's a clear career path. Nigel is getting to experience another part of the country and will start preschool this fall. And I'm pushing myself out of my comfort zone to make new friends and try new things. Those 6 months sans work really reminded us to be grateful for each other and what we do have. Every day I remind myself that we are the lucky ones in this economy. There are plenty of people who would have gone under a lot sooner or turned against each other. And there are plenty of people who have still not found jobs. We pushed negative thoughts and energy aside and found strength in each other. Failure was not an option.

We're still a bit shaken from the experience — we miss our family and our RVA house is still on the market and holding us back —but we can see that this was all for the best. It was the kick in the pants that got us to take a leap.