Persevering As A Student-Parent

It was three weeks before graduation and I had a 25-page paper due by 1 p.m. the next day for my Family As A Context For Child Development class. I absolutely loved this class and learned so much in it. But I was done. Overdone. And I was tired. Over tired. And I just wanted to graduate.

But first I'd have to get through this paper and a few other long assignments, presentations, and finals. That night, after I tucked Aiden in bed at 8 p.m., I cried. No scratch that. I sobbed. A lot. Uncontrollably.  The overwhelming workload and overall stress of being a student momma had gotten to me.

I did the only thing that I knew to do in order to keep my sanity when working out and eating well and staying hydrated with lots of water didn't work. I meditated.... on success and hard work and how far I'd come up until that point.

I graduated from Columbia University with a B.A. in Psychology in 2006 and was pretty well employed. But I decided to go to grad school because I wanted more. More opportunities. More career choices. More money. The things you can do with a Bachelor degree are great, but the things you can do with a Masters degree are phenomenal. At least that's what I thought. And still think.

When I applied for grad school, I made a commitment to Aiden and myself that I was going to see it through come heck or high water. I adopted a "whatever it takes" mentality, and believe you me, it took a lot. 

Head over to The Young Mommy Life to read the rest of this post, particularly how this busy single momma embraced the beauty of perseverance. 

This post was originally published on July 28, 2011. And it still gives me shivers every time I read it. Whew... I can't believe I did it.