Lately (at the Zeck house) we’ve been talking about jobs. More specifically, we’ve been talking with a certain sixteen-year-old girl who needs a job because she now has this: 

I find it interesting. As my kids go through various stages, I’m also reminded of that time in my own life. Especially momentous occasions, like getting my driver’s license (I actually flunked the first time I took it!), buying my first car (it was a Plymouth Laser), and getting a REAL job. (A real job was something other than detasseling corn or babysitting.)  

I can’t say my first job was momentous, but it was definitely memorable. I remember walking into that sweltering kitchen on my first night of making doughnuts. Okay, so it wasn’t my ideal career choice; but I was young, and we all have to start somewhere. My boss tossed me an apron and pointed to a large pot on the stove.  

“Well, go ahead. Get started!” Then she spun around and left the room. 

So there I stood with my silly apron, a couple of spatulas, and a huge batch of bubbling blobs of batter. I took a deep breath. I’d never made doughnuts before. (I’m not sure I’d ever even cooked before.) But I figured, how tough could it be? 

The doughnuts were beginning to brown underneath, so I carefully used the spatulas to flip each one ever-so-gently, making sure not to splatter hot grease everywhere. But just as I was in mid-flip (probably around doughnut #3), the boss-lady returned. 

“No, no, no, that’s not how you do it!” She snatched my spatulas with a look of disgust and quickly flipped them herself. “You gotta do it like this.” 

And that was basically my entire evening. 

Time and again she expected me to do the job, yet she gave me no direction, no guidance, and no instructions. It was so frustrating. I wanted to shout, “Where’s my job description?” 

Hmmm. Now that I think about it, that sounds a bit like my current job … motherhood. 🙂 

Anyway, I’m hoping Emily will have a better experience with her first job.

In case you’re wondering, my doughnut-making career was a short one. After one night on the job, my boss asked me not to return. It was all for the best. I moved on to bigger and better opportunities. And I learned a good lesson. When it comes to doughnuts, I’ll stick with eating them – rather than making them.