Say Yes! So Lara has shared her news and how she said yes to the opportunity to move home and now I’m going to share mine. I will be honest with you I wasn’t sure that I wanted to shout this from the rooftop. I tend to be quiet on how I challenge myself until it’s over, probably fear of failure. But in this case I really feel like I’m a winner already.
Pandemic Push
During the COVID-19 lock down, I realized I wasn’t learning. Travelling personally or for work is when I did most of my learning. People, cultures, new experiences kept my mind and creative juices flowing. When travel came to a halt, there was something missing. This was a perfect time to take a leap since our lives were turned upside down.
Now that we are working from home, and not much of a social life happening I decided to carve out my old commute of 2 hours per day along with all the time I was spending watching TV (ok I’m behind on Ted Lasso, The Morning Show and Succession, I’ll catch up eventually) or on social media and turned it into a learning experience for myself. Yes I could’ve, just read a book, but I needed more structure than that. So, at 51 years old, I decided to go back to school to get my Masters degree.
Read, read, read
I started back in May at Norwich University in Vermont (online) studying International Relations with a concentration in Development. This program fit more with my lifestyle and how I thought my brain could work best. It’s challenging and I’m reading more now than I’ve ever read in my life (slow reader so that kind of stinks so any tips are helpful). But it’s fun learning again! The best part is that it is an expanded study into politics, history and economics in relation to what I do for a living today. Yes Lara, after all those plane rides reading the Economist magazine LOL, finally doing something about it.
The Norwich motto is “I will try”. So that’s what I’m doing. By getting accepted into the program, I felt like I had won already. I committed to myself that if it felt like I was sacrificing too much in other areas of my life a reality check would be needed. With one class under my belt and another almost finished (I have 3 classes left, 1 field test, 1 week on campus and a research paper still to accomplish) in order to graduate, I’m feeling good about it all. It won’t kill me, or at least hasn’t so far LOL.
Overcome
What are your plans after you graduate? There are none! LOL. Maybe that sounds nuts but I don’t know what I will do with this degree or how I will put it to use. I’ve said that from the start. I may do nothing, I may do something, but it’s challenging and bringing me joy in learning. It’s an accomplishment for me. (I just got a 92 on my most recent paper YIPPPEE!) I am expanding my perspective, learning, understanding history, and seeing the International community in different ways than I’ve thought about before. I’m also working on my writing skills. I am grateful this is something I have the opportunity to do.
I was nervous, really nervous. But once you put yourself out there, all of that goes away especially once you know everyone else is in the same anxious boat as you. I WILL TRY, is a phrase I need to to other areas of my life. This phrase plus the phrase I wrote about in a previous blog, SAY YES, needs to be my mantra!
I WILL TRY TO SAY YES! and so should you. Go after things that expand your knowledge, allow you to experience something new and bring joy.
Love this so much! You’re an inspiration! Never too late.
Thank You Sarah!!!!
Thank you for sharing this inspirational “woment”, Christine! How wonderful to keep on learning and to share who you are with others around you. Best wishes for a future that will benefit international development
Thank you so much Linda.
Hooray for you! I’m sure with all your travel, you bring a wealth of perspective to your studies. What a fantastic use of your time and energy. The best part of an education is merely the intellectual wealth you achieve. You go, girl!
Thank you Daryl, really enjoying the process! That’s what counts.