Post-Internship Program Thoughts

As you probably know by now, I have closed the internship program that I ran for 25 years. It has been a long time since I have had a viable applicant, and intern #36 graduated in January, so there was no real reason to keep it open anymore.

To be honest, I am not really missing the role of internship director. 

Is that a bad thing to admit? I'm working through the feelings and guilt and all that accompanies a life-changing decision, and I've had two in the past three months. This was the most recent. So, with two life-changing decisions happening in the span of 12 weeks, I am having to change my habits and my focus for specific things. It is interesting.

I have started the process of going through the resources that I have collected solely for the purpose of my interns to use. Now that there are no more interns, these resources can be reintegrated into my professional library or given away. I have moved my Internship jump drive off the jump drive key ring at work and brought it home to live here. I am using the storage closet as only a storage closet. I am considering setting up a drum set practice room and then moving my office things to the current storage closet which is three times larger than my current office space. I no longer need an office where I can watch interns do their things. All I am waiting for is a burst of energy to get this task accomplished.

I am currently enjoying life without being a mentor.

That sentence makes me feel a twinge of guilt, but I am getting over it quickly. There will probably always be some guilt associated with closing down this program, but I will continue to work on releasing that guilt in a healthy manner.

Meanwhile, I am still working on writing a general internship handbook. Chapter six is coming along. I hope that I will be able to release it shortly, but it will depend on how fast I finish the thoughts that are swirling around my brain. The goal is to have this handbook finished before the end of the school year, but we will see if that happens.

It is time to get going into my day. I have three Toy Story t-shirts to glue together for the recreational therapist and for our clients for Halloween. Fortunately, I have zero documentation to do this morning because I did it all on Friday! This will be a difficult week - the Holiday anticipation is real, especially with my students, so things will be scattered. Anyway, it is time to go. See you tomorrow...