Article December 8, 2014 Issue

A God-directed career

Harmony Wallace

This past year I enjoyed dancing as a trainee at a ballet company in Oregon. Much like an intern, a trainee is given the experience of working with a professional company as a student. I felt like I was able to grow and that I was valued as a dancer, but when it came time to be evaluated for a company position for the following season, the director didn’t make it clear that she had a place for me. This really stung. How could I have gotten this far, on the brink of professionalism, and not make it? What was I going to do if I didn’t get hired? I had worked most of my life toward a career in ballet, and because this particular director had previously expressed interest in me, I hadn’t prepared auditions for any other companies.

I began to panic. After two months of not hearing any confirmation, I began to let doubt and anger get the better of me. I had been praying about my career before the evaluation; therefore, everything was supposed to go smoothly. Clearly, I needed to change my thought! The trainees were preparing for a performance at the end of the month. I knew that I needed to have a handle on this situation mentally before the performance.

My first step was to be grateful for the opportunity to perform. I was given a solo role in the performance, and I knew it was a blessing to be recognized by the director and to be doing what I love. I wasn’t sure if I would continue dancing the next year, so I simply enjoyed the process of rehearsing and preparing. As I prayed, I realized that it didn’t so much matter what exact twists my career path took as long as God was governing. My identity is established with the one and only God, and He unfolds what’s right for me to do.

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