A Sparkle of Hope

Well, I am finally back to writing after a hectic semester of graduate school (I am getting an MBA degree). I had taken a year break and I was eager to get back into college at the beginning of this year. I have a hard time starting something and not finishing it. However, I had somehow forgotten how hard it was to work full-time and take college classes at the same time. When the teachers sent out the syllabuses and requirements for the classes, I immediately knew I was in trouble. All of a sudden, I had a huge head banging realization that getting a Master’s degree is no joke. Not only did the reality of college sit in, but I was also moved to a different position at my job where I was required to be in training for eight weeks. I had to learn insurance contracts, medical terminology, and process refunds for patients and different insurances. I loved working for the hospital, but it was hard at the beginning. I even worked overtime for little while.
As the semester started and moved forward, the researching and writing began. I wrote business type research papers until I was constipated. At one point, I was writing an average of twenty pages each week for almost two months. And to make matters worse, everything had to be APA style formatted. The teachers graded heavily on APA, rather than content of the paper. My grades were decent, but I thought I could do better. I always am hard on myself even if I am doing something that I don’t enjoy. My information technology class was exceptionally difficult and the harder I tried, the worse the grade was. Or so it seemed like. There were times where I just thought there’s no way I can get through the entire semester. I had thoughts of quitting, just drop everything and run. Little thoughts went through my head saying a Master’s degree isn’t worse it. I actually for once thought getting married and starting a family was a better option :-). But I had a goal to finish so every time I had a negative meltdown, I pulled myself together and pressed forward. I didn’t have much of a social life, I wanted to sleep like an old person with any free time I had.
People, I am here to tell y’all that if your goals and dreams seem to be far out of reach and hard to accomplish, then you’re doing it right. This doesn’t apply to just education. Things worth having are never easy and if it is, then you’re not dreaming big enough. It takes great determination and willingness to succeed. Be a role model for those that look up to you.
My final grade for both classes were an A. I was super over the moon surprised and ecstatic!. I had definitely settled for much lower grades because towards the end of the semester I just didn’t have the energy to care. But now I am motivated to continue on with my Master’s degree and have plans to graduate in less than a year.
This semester, I learned that it is okay to do homework till 3:00 A.M. Saturday nights and then get a few hours of sleep before getting up and go to church for an energy boost. It’s not lame to do homework instead of going out. I also learned not to be so hard on myself, duh…. What a mystery. Sometimes less is more. I hope God will spare me a few wrinkles for realizing this ;-).