Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Week Seven- Realizing the Parts of my Real Purpose in my Work and Passions


This is Me!


Internship- Black Star Farms
Stephanie Sheffer
Week 7

"The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of my attitude on life.  Attitude, to me, is more than the facts.  It is more important than the past, the education, the money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what other people think or say or do.  It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill.  It will make or break a company... a church.... a home.  The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day.  We cannot change our past... we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way.  We cannot change the inevitable.  The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude.  I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it.  And so it is with you... we are in charge of our Attitudes." -Quote from Charles Swindoll

That pretty much says it all in what I have learned this week as I progress in my internship at Blackstar Farms.  The pace is starting to pick up here and it requires me to be ever present and committed to meeting and exceeding the expectations that have been placed before me.  I feel so thankful to have found a place that addresses so many of the aspects of life that I love.  This place has given me a chance to put into practice a skill that goes beyond the cooking.  It gives me the opportunity to share my joy and happiness while providing a sustenance that is special and helpful and required for all people to have the energy to live.  I heavily realize now it is not just about the food that I am dealing with.

The beauty of what the property of BlackStar Farms has to offer is we make connections with the people that come here to visit, during their stay and experience.  We take time to assure that what we are delivering in our services is special, and unique.  This all became so clear to me with the first wedding party that we hosted of the summer.  Every detail that we had been put in care of for this group was met with a specific commitment to quality.  Seeing the time and effort that Chef Jon put into preparing the menus and how he planned our carrying out the production responsibilities was very impressive to me.  Seeing how Jill- our Event Coordinator put in long days and countless attentions to detail to make sure they felt special was equally impressive.  The owner Don Coe shows up for breakfast each morning to engage with the guests.  He is interested in their stories while sharing much of the wonder and excitement that has made this property what it is.  His commitment to being present at the Inn in this way is truly exceptional- it brings our teamwork level up to the highest notch.

So the mother of the bride came down to our kitchen on their first mornings stay at 5:30am.  She found me busy in my tasks already, preparing the breakfast that would start out their highly planned out day.  I would be the one developing and serving the meal that would provide the nourishment they would need to have a great start to this special day.  Realizing this fact was a major seismic shift in the way I would approach my job from here on out.  Her and I shared a beautiful conversation about being mothers, and wedding days, and about discovering what we are passionate about.  We had never met before that, but we made a connection that morning as I chopped and stirred the elements of their breakfast. 

This is not the first time I have conversed with our guests and felt this way.  I am feeling that they see me, and my gifts, and how they fit very rightly into my pursuits.  I understand that every one of us is searching for our purpose in life. Mine is being revealed to me every time I receive these kinds of affirmations.  Thankfully I have known this even before I came to Blackstar through the blessings of my family and friends- but in this journey for me in my internship I am ever more confident that I am living my purpose.

This week of my internship was full of many rewarding recognitions of my hard work and positive attitude.  To be successful as a chef, or any professional for that matter I have learned that it is so much more about my attitude than the final product of my work.  My creations will always be successful when I show up with my optimism that believes whatever I set my mind to I can achieve.