Sometimes we reach our goals later than planned

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Adventures of a College Mawmaw

By now, most know that I am in college, working toward a Masters in English. What many do not know it that I am staring down the big five oh. I will be 47 in December, meaning I am only three years off from celebrating being a half of a century old.

I graduated high school in 1990 and decided to raise a family. I always thought I would get my college degree. I just assumed I would have finished by this point in my life. However, that would not be the case. I did not even start my journey till I was 41.

I would not change a thing about my past, because it has made me who I am today.

A small part of me wishes I would have gone to college straight out of high school, though. Maybe I would not have struggled as much with working dead end, low paying jobs. But I digress.

I know my life experiences has made me appreciate my opportunities to get my college education. Maybe I would not have appreciated it and worked as hard as I am now, if I would have gone to college at the ripe age of seventeen.

What does a person know about being a serious college student at that age?

Some people are lucky and know exactly what they want. So, they take dual credit classes and graduate high school with their diploma and an Associate’s Degree. Even though dual credit was not a thing when I was in high school, I always thought I had that drive to go to college straight from high school.

My dad always picked on me and said I was an honor student in school, then once I graduated, I took a stupid pill. He was not happy that I put my college career on hold to raise a family.

I believe my life experiences have forced me to focus on school because I do not have the luxury of getting a second chance. This is my only chance. So, I’m learning everything I can and making the most of my college education.

For the ones that are thinking about college. I would not suggest waiting till your 40s to begin the journey. You will lose precious time that can never be given back. Also, make sure to take school seriously because it is too hard to rebuild something once it has been destroyed.

I know this journey is mine, and I would not change it for anything. Yet, there are a few things I would change. My mom passed away in 2005, she was not able to watch me achieve my degrees.

There is a plus side, though. My dad was able to watch me graduate from Southeastern Oklahoma State University with a dual Bachelors. So, he knows I took the smart pill again.