So long, farewell...

I've been on the road for 7 months straight, Monday through Thursday of every week. I finally decided today that enough is enough. In spite of the advantages employment at Microsoft offers, it has not offered me the ability to spend time with my husband as much as I'd like.

Although I have been struggling with this decision for months now, the final decision came as a result of a conversation I had this morning with the janitor at my current client, of all places. He told me he had been married for 14 years, and had been a sales rep for all of Central and South America, and was on the road much of the time; he's now divorced. He said, "You don't want to get used to living life like that. You wake up one day and wonder where 1 year, 2 years went. Money isn't worth it. You need to treasure those times with your husband." Hearing that, combined with the fact that I just learned yesterday that my aunt and uncle, who have been married for more than 30 years, are getting divorced because they had increasingly been living seperate lives under the same roof, made me realize that I don't want to get used to this lifestyle. My manager at work seemed to imply this was a phase I would push through, but I decided today I don't want to get used to being absent from my family.

So, this afternoon, I tendered my resignation at Microsoft. I feel a little like I just broke up with someone. When I went into the relationship, I had such high hopes, but I soon discovered it was not offering my anything I couldn't get outside the relationship. Like a breakup, I don't feel particularly good about it, but I trust that I will feel better about it over time. It's a loss of a dream, but hopefully a new beginning, now that I'm armed with a little more self-awareness about what works and more importantly, what doesn't.