I'm not going to lie, it has been a hectic last three weeks. Life as an intern has been nothing like I expected, however, I really didn't know what I was getting myself into in the first place. Truth be told, my internship placement was not fully confirmed until less than a week before my first day.
My original placement with the Australian Baseball League fell through the cracks at the last minute (for reasons I'm still unaware of) before heading off to New Zealand. It took a toll on me. I had been gearing up for this experience for MONTHS and was so excited about it with everyone I shared it with. That was all taken away with just a simple email, and I'm going to be honest, I was ready to just go home right then and there.
Luckily, New Zealand was a stress reliever and filled with experiences I wish I could do over and over again. Heck, you might see me end up moving there when it's all said and done. I honestly don't know about that, but seriously, it was one of the best weeks of my life.
I lived below the largest mountains I'd ever seen, I witnessed sunsets that might as well have been slapped on a postcard, I ate the best burger I've ever tasted, and fell from the highest cliff jump in the world. It was a week of adventure and a nice change of scenery, but I was not ready to leave.
While this was all great, I knew I was trying to run from the reality of a final essay and a brand new internship I had no information about. I knew reality would slap me in the face as soon as my plane touched down in Sydney... and that it did.
On that Monday morning, I woke up and headed to Central Station, praying for the best with my new internship with the Sydney Blue Sox, Sydney's professional baseball team. The hour long commute landed me in Rooty Hill. If you don't know anything about Rooty Hill, it's a small community in Western Sydney, and when I say small, I mean small.
Once stepping off the train, I only saw a field of horses, a small row of convenient stores, and people without shirts and shoes, and thought I was back in a rural, small town Tennessee. It didn't feel like I was in Sydney anymore.
We pulled into Blacktown International Sportspark to the Blue Sox Stadium- my new home for the next 8 weeks. My supervisor Krissie is great; she made me feel more than welcome and put me right to work. My daily tasks in the sport communications field consist of sending emails, making phone calls, writing articles, and managing social media platforms- exactly what I was expecting.
A big difference in my internship expectations is that I didn't realize that how involved I'd be in the managing of big projects for an organization during my first week. Thus far, I've already planned and filmed 2 successful FacebookLIVE events and am now full swing ahead for tournament season this coming month.
The funny thing? I love it.
I was absolutely mortified at the fact that all my internship plans were thrown out the window in an instant. I was worried sick, but came to find out that the backup plan wasn't so bad after all. Sure, Rooty Hill is not an ideal location and the commute does get a bit monotonous after a long day, but I'm getting to get hands-on experience in the career I've wanted to pursue since I was 8 years old.
Nothing is more rewarding than that.
It's safe to say that nothing has gone to plan on this trip, even in my internship at times (like getting into a car accident, but that's a story for a later date). I've learned so much already in this short amount of time, and I know I'll be more equipped for my career when it's all said and done.
Sydney, you keep continuing to surprise me; most of the time in good ways, but sometimes in not so good. You're really testing the boundaries I have put on myself, but I'm sure that's probably for the best. I'm dreading the end of April, but until then, I'll continue being the working girl who's adapting to life's continuous unexpected.
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