Caution: Midnight realizations ahead

Life will not always happen as you wish or thought it would. 

Of course, this is a simple idea that has been preached over and over again. There are times, though, that these little gems of wisdom don't mean much to me until I experience them myself. Last night, while reading up on the realities of nursing school I thought against my personal protocol, It would have been great to attend Nursing School while we were in Boise. I try to never play the "If-Only" game with myself. "If only I would have been able to go there" or "If only I had been able to do that" or what ever the case may be. I find I just cause myself to become stuck in anger and frustration, ignoring real solutions and hindering personal growth. 

The point is, I wound up playing that game. I wound up remembering the times I played that game while I was in a specialized educational program in a small town in Idaho. At the time, I thought, If only family, friends, or Ryan could come and live here with me to keep me focused and help balance my life while I endure this schooling that is not what I thought it would be. I saw all the locals and married people in my class going home to a cute little place and a husband/family who kept them afloat. I have to admit, I was jealous of their immediate support. (I had overwhelming support, by the way, but it was 3 hours away. Still, I couldn't have done it at all with out them.) Obviously, my career took a different route than what I planned and it is totally okay with me. (Life -1, Katherine - 0)

However, on the route I imagined, I married a wonderful man. I don't know how I managed to wrangle him in, but I must have been on my A game (and that doesn't happen often). Thank goodness he still loves me despite my crazy antics, silly obsessions, and wicked hair days completely unrelated to said A game. (Life -1, Katherine -1)

Close to a year later, we are 2,000 miles away from the city that had been my home for 5 years (and Ryan's hometown). So, of course, it would have been more comfortable to go to nursing school surrounded by the family and friends we adore. But, we needed to find our place in the world, make our own path, and break away for better opportunities and career choices. It's a bit different than I may have thought 5 years ago or even 2 years ago, but nothing that we can't manage. Nothing that going home to cozy apartment and a brilliant, hilarious, handsome husband can't fix. Or homemade fudge brownies, for that matter. Just sayin'. So, bring it on nursing school in PA. (Life - 2, Katherine - 2)

I had to add this for some reason. In all it's imperfection, I just love it. (Life - 2, Katherine - 3)

WE WIN.

What can I say, I get satisfaction in the little things.

Professional Student

Yes, I am a college graduate. I believed that once I was finished it would be the end-all be-all of accomplishments. Of course, I looked forward to that last final for five years, so why wouldn't it be everything I imagined? I changed majors three or four times, attended two universities, completed about 60 finals, endured some of the toughest challenges, and rejoiced in quite a few glorious moments - all leading up to my Bachelor of Science degree.

Now, I am longing to get back to school. Perhaps, looking forward to finals is a bit of a stretch, but feeling the accomplishment is worth looking forward to. My longing will be over soon because I was recently accepted into an Accelerated Nursing program at DeSales University. Starts in May 2010 and finishes 15 months later!

Nursing? Yup, I have a good feeling about it. There are many aspects of nursing that I already enjoy (health, medicine, the body, disease, helping people) so putting it all together into application should be a natural progression. It won't be easy, but I am looking forward to the challenge and rewards! Besides, two Bachelor of Science degrees in about six and a half years? Not too shabby!