Room To Grow

In my time at UK these past three years, being a Family Science major has been most difficult because when ever I tell people my major the first question I receive is, "what do you do with that?" People do not understand because it is a unique degree which looks at all perspectives of families. Family Science is a great degree for helping others and helping families, which is my ultimate goal. I had heard of Extension but I thought, I don't know about cooking and sewing so I don't know if Family and Consumer Science is for me. I was so excited to be able to apply for the internship though, even if I wasn't sure if I would be a good fit. Once I was offered a position in Pendleton County as an FCS intern I couldn't contain my excitement! I knew it would be a busy summer, but I definitely didn't know how busy.

My first week in the office we had something to do every single day, including Saturday and Sunday. My first Wednesday I left my house at 6:45am and returned home at 10pm because of a staff meeting then a cooking class that night. I am not a cook, a baker, or much on anything in the kitchen because I didn't grow up cooking and since my major is Family Science, we don't learn about the nutrition and cooking in depth. I felt lost and was so worried that knowing so little would hinder my confidence and ability to be the best intern there was. I stepped back to realize extension agents aren't masters at everything they teach and they don't know it all, so it is really expected you learn everyday because this is an educational career! I love that this career is about always learning something new. While my major isn't specifically the consumer science side, I have room to grow and learn about things I am so interested in!

After new tasks, learning, and working long days I thought to myself after the first week, how do people do this every week? How do they have enough energy to keep going? What keeps them going?! I have to say, after over a month here, those questions have been answered. A little over a month isn't much time especially in such a diverse career such as extension, but I have fallen in love. I see how they do it every week, every day. It's the people in the community thanking you for giving them motivation to get up and active, or teaching them five different ways to cook green beans that make it rewarding. I love seeing the kids faces when they realize that what they cooked actually tastes good and on top of that, that it's healthy! There are never two days the same, even if you're doing the same event. I love coming to work knowing that if I have a day with nothing scheduled, it will be filled with something that is new and exciting. There are so many activities, events, learning opportunities, the list goes on through the extension service and I love being able to learn about them as I plant my roots and grow in such a wonderful program !