pondering the need for a "thing"...

So a couple of weeks ago I had a quite pivotal moment in my life. My DaisyLady friend and i were chatting over tea and cookies in our usual style about life goals and what our next moves should be with me being frustrated with uni and her unsure about whether to take a job she had been offered. She was telling me about needing a Character Reference and that she needed someone to write one for her when she suddenly thought of ThePartner who has just become an official teacher. I asked whether i could do one for her and innocently she said, "but you dont have a 'thing', you know like a title or a profession" and it suddenly hit me that she was so right. Im not really a Behavioural Scientist so BBSc doesnt count, im not working in the field and im not yet a Social Worker or a Midwife- So After 6 years of studying Im still a Student, working casually in retail who really needs to question what exactly i have got out of it all and what i want from it because at this point it just seems like im studying for the sake of studying!! While i really really want to be a midwife and combine it with Social Work, how am i going to finish my degree and work/make money/contribute to society and travel before we want to have a baby?? or more to the point, am i really enjoying still being at uni when i dont feel like i have actually achieved much, and while i shouldnt feel compelled to conform to the expectations of needing a title or profession no one will employ me in the area i want to work until i do have my 'thing' but i wont get that until i pull my finger out and either go back and finish the small part i have left in SW or suck it up and stick it out for the next two years to finish Mid in which i wont be able to work, travel or have kids! argh, the decisions!

Ive decided that this was a very necessary kick in the be-hind that ive been needing for a while and ive decided to start getting proactive and realistic about achieving my goals. So now im thinking that I really need to consider getting a job NOW that i can use as a placement for my social work, finish my Masters (and hopefully still do at least one subject in Mid so im still in the field) and get a very well deserved 'THING" at the end of my name, become part of the ASW association, earn enough during this time to go and volunteer in Cambodia, India and Thailand in some birth centres, orphanages and women's groups, and then we can consider what comes next! ThePartner are very much on the same page that we want to travel in our van around Australia, but we can certainly do this with a baby and once i have my 'thing' i can focus more on midwifery and do it slowly.

I have also come to the realisation that my passion is working in women's health and what i really want to do is educate women about their birthing options, which is really in a Childbirth Education role so during this time i hope to also complete a Dimploma in Childbirth Education and Breastfeeding Counseling through possibly Childbirth International which i can do externally and take my time, and its not too long so i get get this fairly quickly and use it while im traveling and/or working as a Social Worker! I just need to find $1200 and rearrange everything to make it all work and tie in nicely together. Thank goodness that at least ThePartner is sorted out at least for now, he has is 'thing' and he's got a job so fingers crossed i can start the ball rolling by finding a job that's around 6months and that i can use for my Masters!