I can’t believe it’s finally over! After two long years of slogging through life with no one getting 100% of me, I finally finished graduate school. I’m honestly not sure how I did it, but I know it was worth it. Now I have to face all those folks who keep asking, “so now that you’re out of school, what are going to do with it?”

WHA?!

Can’t we all just take a break and be happy about something for more than 30 seconds?!?!?!

 

Seriously, it’s not like I didn’t have a plan when I decided to start my grad program, but life took a left turn a few short months into my program and now my professional life is on a totally different path and I LOVE IT! I fully intend to use what I’ve learned in my program with my new role. In fact, I already have. I was able to choose my own elective and take an ecurriculum course which resulted in a video that is now part of one of our internal badge programs. BOOM!

I also intend to build on that and create more programs like it. I’ve even gotten the go ahead to start looking at what other of our internal systems may be prime for a little ecurriculum spruce up. See, I started my program as many of us do, as an escape plan. When I got offered another opportunity in a different department, I leapt at the chance and never looked back. So now I’ve spent two years getting a feel for my role and pushing the limits of it to grow into something else. I have the full support of my supervisors and they see the picture I’m painting. That kind of support has been a long time coming for me, so there’s no way I’m wasting it. My Corporate & Organizational Communication program will more than support my goal and my focus in Leadership has only helped me get a firm grasp of how important organizational culture really is. I won’t waste that insight either, especially if I get to build a team of my own someday.

Right now, I’m just getting back to me. I haven’t been able to relax or enjoy much of anything for a while. Saturday, I cleaned the house and seriously, I was glad to do it. It really needed it. The attention I haven’t been able to pay to certain things is glaring, so I’ll spend a little time chipping away at those and figuring out what I like to do when I’m not writing papers all the time.

I have a stack of books I either abandoned when school started or received as gifts and had to ignore for two years. Thank goodness George R.R. Martin hasn’t written another word or I’d really be behind.

It’s also lovely having dance parties with Miss O again. Not only does my girl have some moves I’ll need to worry about soon, it’s just nice to be happy enough to WANT to dance. I spent some time in the garden planting our seasonal veggies and it was literally the most peaceful I’ve felt in years. I love gardening and just being outside…in nature…without a laptop…looking up supporting articles. The weight that has been lifted is immense and I am honestly so proud of myself for sticking with it.

As my Daddy lay in a hospital bed enduring chemo, I promised him I’d finish graduate school. It may have taken me two programs, two schools, and two and a half years, but I finally did it, with an almost perfect GPA to top it off. I know he’d be proud of me. And he’d want me to sit back, relax and enjoy it for a little bit.

So if you need me, I’ll be in the back, lounging in an adirondack chair next to Hubs, enjoying some cool lemonade, reading a good book, while watching Miss O blow bubbles in her fairy garden.