Kick adversity to the curb!

Adversity – 1. adverse fortune or fate; misfortune; calamity.  2. an adverse event or circumstance

I started graduate school in August 2003 with the intent to graduate in May 2006.  It is now January 2007 and I am STILL not done with grad school.  Am I upset?  No, but I have had a number of frustrations along the way.  Through my journey I have faced a number of "adversities" that had the potential to keep me away from driving on and finishing school.  BUT… I am persevering and I will graduate in December of this year (come he!! or high water!!!).

The intent of this post is to share my experiences in and around grad school.  I know, it seems boring, but I hope my story will inspire you to "kick adversity to the curb" (no matter what the adversity may be) and drive on with your life.

I applied to grad school while on bed rest – pregnant with my daughter.  Instead of wallowing in self-pity and staring at my HUGE belly all day in the recliner, I took advantage of my "down time" and got all my ducks in a row to apply for grad school.  It was a lengthy process and I was not exactly in the best mental or physical condition to do it, but I CHOSE to drive on and apply – and thus, get accepted.

I started school when my son was three and my daughter was five months old.  10 months later I got a full-time job (one I applied for but wasn’t real confident that I would get – but, surprise… I did!).  So I was working full-time AND going to grad school AND I was a mother of two and a mil-spouse, etc.  My family sacrificed A LOT during that time.  I was rarely home and when I was home I was either doing work (for my job) or school work.  Looking back I missed out on things that I had previously taken for granted (i.e. quality time with my family).

Six months after I started working I had to resign.  My husband was about to deploy and my grad school requirements were about to increase (classes and an internship).  I came to realize I wasn’t Superwoman and something had to go… so I chose to resign from my job (which was not an easy decision).

My husband was wounded in Iraq five months after he deployed.  I had to leave my kids with my sister so I could go to Walter Reed and be with my husband.  Again, NOT an easy thing to do!  I was in the middle of my summer semester and had to finish my classwork via e-mail and snail-mail.  I was fortunate because the school I was attending allowed me to finish even though I could not attend class.  So, while my husband was in the hospital I had to take a final exam and write two papers (one was 10 pages long!  UGH!!!).  But I did it and I got good grades! :)

After that summer semester I took a year off of school.  I finished my internship in the Spring of last year, right before we PCSed.  When we PCSed I applied to another school and prayed they would accept me and most of my hard-earned credits.  Again, I was fortunate and it is all working out.

Despite a few set-backs and situations that I could not control, I CHOSE and I am still choosing to be persistent and pursue my master’s.  It has not been an easy road by a long shot, but I kicked adversity to the curb and said, "HA!  Watch what I can do!!!" 

Now it’s your turn…