Every year, every semester starts the same way. I tell my students how long I've been an educator, and we talk about the course - American Lit, British Lit, or World for my high school students. With my college students it is Humanities courses such as Cultural Diversity, Introduction to Humanities or Humanities and Contemporary Pop Culture. We discuss what they know, like and dislike about the course they are about to take. They ask my how I ended up with a doctorate in Humanities with a dissertation topic related to the military and the Just War Tradition.
These conversations inevitably come back to being open to new possibilities, but follow your dreams and work hard.
Follow your dreams.
I followed the work hard part of this and for the most part did follow my dreams. I always said I'd be a doctor some day, though at the time I thought it would a medical doctor, but life takes us down different paths. I worked full time while earning my dual Masters. I continued to work full time and attending school full time while working on my doctorate. Oh, and my now husband proposed during that time, we planned a wedding, got married and moved about 700 miles away as well.
When people asked about the doctorate and why I was a perpetual student, I always said I wanted to write and research eventually. Slowly that faded into the background. I still worked hard, had my son after years of infertility issues, and finally finished my doctorate in 2019 - it took 7 years total, which was much longer than I expected, but I worked hard and finished. But my writing and research took a backseat - heck it wasn't even in the car anymore.
I enjoy educating others. I learn so much from my students. I enjoy teaching them to think critically and hopefully be the best citizens they can be when they go out into the world.
Then the Pandemic hit. I had to find things to do with my son who was about to turn 4 and was home for almost 3 months. Painting was one of those things we did together. It was a rush of all things - a reminder of my creative side that had been dormant for decades. He and I even sold a few of our pieces.
Flash forward to summer of 2021. Change. Dreams. It is time.
No more in the futures. No more I'll try to make time.
Last Friday was my last day as a full time high school teacher. Oh, I still adjunct at the University I've been at for 4.5 years, but my day job is now to live my dreams and find out just what I can do with my drive and determination. It's time to walk the walk I've preached to my students all these years.
I am creative. I am a writer. My research skills are on point. I am an author. I am an artist.
It's time to create. I hope you'll join me on this journey and share your own journey with me. as I work to build this community, share my work, what works and what doesn't and build a new way of living for myself and my family - one where I am the role model I want to be for my kids.
-Sara