Back to Work I Go

Happy New Year! I hope everyone has had a splendid holiday season.

Tomorrow marks a big step for me. After leaving the workforce in June of 2025, thinking that I would permanently retire, I realized I needed some structure and a little more meaning. I will be going back to work as a part-time remote librarian.

Why did I decide to give up my dream of being retired at 37? There were several reasons that contributed to my desire to work.

I have my daughter in preschool and I am bored.
- My daughter really needs to be learning Spanish, and the best way for her to do that is immersion. As such, we have her in a very nice preschool program near our home. That means 30 hours a week, I do not have my daughter to look after and need something else to occupy my time.
I want to contribute to my household.
- Most of my family’s savings are from my husband. I feel guilty coasting off of his good decisions when I am capable of paying my own way and moving the household forward financially.
I want extras that didn’t fit in the budget.
- There were some life add-ons that just wouldn’t be possible without another source of income for our family. The biggest add-on will be tuition for the International German school when my daughter gets a little older. Also, I can afford to hire a house cleaning service now and we can go ahead and join the gym without worrying that it will blow our budget.
I need more structure in my life.
- Over the last several months, I have tried to get into the groove of retirement and create some kind of schedule for myself. However, I cannot make that happen without some type of requirement on my time. I know lots of people who have productive post work lives. I just am not that person.
I want to do meaningful work.
- I have been fortunate to work as a librarian for fifteen years now, and I always feel like I am contributing to society. Whether I am helping people in the public library find their legal forms, teaching young college students data, media, or information literacy, or assisting faculty on ground breaking research, it feels like the work I am doing matters.

What will I be doing that I will find meaningful in the latest iteration of my career? I will be working as an online librarian for a graduate-level university that educates and trains development workers around the world. I strongly believe in providing aid and development to other nations, and I look forward to supporting students and faculty doing the hard work on the ground.

I am very much looking forward to this next chapter of my career and life in Ecuador. I cannot wait to get back to work!