Living Wage, pt II and The Year of Change

i wanted to pick up on my previous post about working wages in movement orgs. There's also a sense that many folks with partners have some agreement where one of them makes mondo money while the other becomes a professional do-gooder. We know of so many examples of this - and it calls to question what happens when both folks want to do socially conscious work, and neither wants the other to give up their passion. Do we inadvertently have to struggle just to make ends meet? Or do we have to find some space between the two of us in which one has to give up the things that he/she believe in, to ensure that the institution that you share between you remains viable, rather than worrying about the same for an NGO or a cause?

We've found a good balance for us - more of a "we've both got to stay true to the work that we feel that we have to do." However, I feel that my pending decision to go to school for three years is going to test that balance in a significant way. There is much planning to do to make sure that we're not wiped out and burnt out at the end of that next phase.

But I'm getting more excited about change. I think that the trip to Washington made me more excited as well, even though I didn't get a chance to spend much time thinking about being local and what that would mean, I at least had the chance to be in the environment again. The prospect of working in communities that are wholly new to me is scary and invigorating - the prospect of working in communities and settings where things are just getting off the ground, where the deep-seated bitterness and antagonisms that gum up coalition-building in NYC are largely absent, is very appealing. Being a student in that environment may allow me to explore organizing and other skills in community-based work that I haven't been able to develop as a working staffer.

The prospect of leaving the comfort of a place that feels like home no matter how random or wonderful is frightening.

So emotional moderation is the key, at least until we make a decision.