The Unveiling...

The day was August 12th, 2011 when I made that impulsive move...

 While perusing the Polyface website, I noticed that they were taking applications for their 2012 summer internship. The deadline to enter was in three days, and on an impulse, I sent in my own application.

I have to hand it to Joel... He is quite creative when thinking up applications! I was expecting the usual, "What do you hope to learn here, how long have you been farming, what experience do you have, etc." sort of questions. Instead, it was questions like, "How do you feel about conservative, right wing Christian creationists? How do you feel about Liberal, left wing, tree-hugging, humanist evolutionists? What is the hardest job you've ever done, and why? How do you feel about killing animals?" I had to laugh as I answered them all. :)

I was told that they would go through all the applications and choose their picks by August 22nd. So I waited... August 22nd came, but no word from the Salatins. September came, and still no word.

Finally, when we were two weeks into Sept. I sheepishly e-mailed and asked if they had decided anything. Sheri (Joel's daughter-in-law) replied saying that they hadn't yet, since Joel had been out of town. But hopefully by the end of September.

So I waited some more! September came and went... No word.

October came... Still no word.

I gave up. I obviously hadn't been picked, seeing as I hadn't heard from them, so I put the whole idea at the back of my mind and tried to forget it.

Then, yesterday morning, I received an e-mail from Polyface, with the subject line merely saying, "Polyface Response". I felt all the blood drain from my face (that's a really weird feeling, by the way), as I clicked to open it...

The room started spinning as I read an e-mail that began, "Congratulations!  You've passed the first big hurdle in your quest to becoming a 2012 Polyface intern.  More to go, but please take the time to smile and enjoy being one of the 33 percent who received an invitation to our two-day on-farm checkout."

The e-mail went on to explain that 93 other people sent in applications, and they had managed to whittle the list down to 30. I was one of the thirty. 

Now, they wanted their thirty picks to come out to the farm in January so they could personally meet each one, and see if we were cut out for the job. Joel's exact words were, " We will surely have some gut-wrenching tough work to do to see what you're made of, as we assemble our team for 2012." They had to eventually whittle their list of thirty prospects down to eight. And only two of those eight would be girls. The stakes are high...

But then it sunk in. I MADE IT THIS FAR!!! Out of 93 other people, I was one of the chosen people to continue the quest!! I might be going to Polyface farms!!! 

That's when I thought I was going to be sick. The adrenaline rush was huge. So I sat down and tried to collect myself, but it took awhile. 

I was beaming from ear to ear for the rest of the day, after that. I danced throughout the house, and sang at the top of my lungs outside. This was really happening!! I wasn't dreaming!!

The family has commenced to prayer about the matter now. Virginia is a long way away, and I would be gone for 3 months. While I certainly hope that I will get to follow this dream, and opportunity of a life time, we'll see what the future holds...