Rethinking Work: Finding Meaning in the Marathon of Life

Discovering meaning and resilience through the evolving journey of work

Photo by Roman Bozhko on Unsplash

They say, “Love what you do, and you’ll never work a day in your life.” What they don’t tell you is how much blood, sweat, and heartache you’ll pour into that so-called love. Work isn’t a daydream — it’s a battle—a marathon. And I’m running it with no map and no finish line in sight.

Did anyone prepare us for what this would take? Most of us were handed a script from the generation before — parents trudging off to work with weary eyes and heavy steps. My parents didn’t sugarcoat it. They said, “Work’s a grind. You’ll hate it.” And I believed them for a while.

But here’s the twist: I didn’t hate work. I loved it. I craved it. The challenge, learning, and hustle are like a drug. Work, to me, was never the enemy. It was the people, the politics, the sabotage that dragged me down. And even then, I’d pick myself up, dust myself off, and move to the next battlefield.

I’ve fought through jobs that made me sweat and employment that made me think. I’ve had roles that demanded dress attire and others where I got my hands dirty. I’ve been the lady demo-ing laundry Dryell to strangers in a mall, and I’ve photographed repossessed mobile homes for banks that didn’t…