I "just" got back from a month in Europe, and my biggest takeaway is that there is far too much to do.
I actually arrived home over a week ago, and I was immediately overwhelmed by everything that I want to do that I learned of or was inspired to do while traveling and spending 10 days in the UK and three weeks in Tuscany, Italy, combined with the things that I noramlly want to do when I am home in New England, USA. I need to start drinking espresso again!
I need to discern whether I am doing too much, or whether I need to organize my time better. I not only feel that I want to do too much as it is, but I also want to look into doing more after the enriching experiences that I had in Europe. To make a long, babbly story more clear:
What I was already doing:
Building a freelance interpreting practice in Massachusetts
Volunteering with WAGGGS (the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts)
Studying spoken Italian
Researching my Italian ancestry and culture (see next point)
Researching Italian work possiblities in Rome and/or Sicily
Slowly working towards a Graduate Certificate or Masters in Catholic Theology
Reading as professional development based on colleagues' reccommendations
Pursuing personal development goals
What I wanted to pursue, pre-June 2022 (pre-travel):
Start a freelance interpreting practice in New Hampshire
Obtain the NIC (National Interpreter Certification)
Start a freelance interpreting practice in Maine, Vermont, possibly Rhode Island (as much of New England as I can logisically manage)
Learn BSL (British Sign Language)
Research work opportunities in the UK--Newcastle, London, possibly Manchester, Leeds
European Masters in Sign Language Interpreting if accepted
What I now want to pursue, post-June 2022 and having completed the Siena School for Liberal Arts Deaf Studies Summer Professioanls & Graduate Students Program:
Become fluent in spoken/written Italian
Grow in my LIS (Lingua dei Segni Italiana) knowledge and develop fluency
If I can gain citizenship through ancestry, study LIS interpreting at University in either Sicily or Venice
Obtain a student visa to attend a part-time graduate program for BSL and go on to study interpreting in the UK
Thank you for reading this far, as this has become more of a brain-storming session than it is a blog post. However, if you have read this far and resonate with any of the goals that I have for myself, please do reach out so we can connect on them. Thank you so much; peace and all good, pace e bene.
Comments