I can breathe again

Today was my last day of school. I don't think my head quite believes this yet, but it's true.

At the last minute I decided to walk in the graduation ceremonies tomorrow. I really never wanted to because I started this fresh out of high school and I was embarrassed that I am finally a graduate at 28 years old. I am not finished yet, I want to continue on to get my Bachelor's, so I felt like acknowledging this degree would be like a stopping point. But I have realized that it's actually a reflection point just for me. I need to take a moment and think about how hard it has been to 'keep on trucking' (that one's for you, babe.) over the last 10 years and actually finish this. I have stopped so many times before and you would think that I would be smart enough to just quit while I was down, but I needed to finish this and actually complete a goal I set out to do so many years ago. I could just never let it be. Time flew by so quickly, and other things in my life took priority...good things, bad things, great things; but it was always in the back of my mind and I would just plug away, one class at a time, year after year as I could.

I don't think this moment would be as beautiful or as meaningful for me if I would have done it in less time. Sitting out at grad practice tonight made me really stop and think for the first time about not only what I have actually done, but what I have gone through and what has happened in my life over the last 10 years and that giving up on this would have been like giving up on myself and I didn't do it! I didn't give up...it took me ten years to finish a two year degree, but I didn't give up. I finished it. And I will stand a little taller and hold my head a bit higher for it.

Lifting a ten year weight off of me...now that's breathing.