Because I want to

I didn’t realize how my decision to return to school would bring out such strong opinions in people.  I’ve had a lot of people get very excited and seen their chests swell at the idea.  I’ve also had people tell me it’s ridiculous and a waste, and I have the strong impression that their idea of me getting out somewhere around 40 is as ridiculous as the world’s oldest Titanic survivor deciding she wants to be a competitive ice dancer.  Both of these reactions, the posititve and the negative, confuse me.  I’m not entirely sure why I see life as a series of moments and stages, and other people see it as begining, work, and end.  At this stage, I just want to go to school.

I’ve had trouble explaining this to my husband as well, who is very supportive of me getting an education and being able to have the career I want.  He doesn’t understand why “because I want to” is a valid reason for an adult.  He also didn’t have a Mom who returned to school when she was my age, or get to see her look of bliss when talking about her English Lit class.  I did, and I understand now how valubale this all is.  I didn’t think it was a big deal when my Mom went back to school when I was 10, and got confused then when people would freak out about it, asking how she could possibly keep it all together.  There were 4 of us kids, my Dad worked very hard to support all of us, I made dinners for the family and we all had chores.  It’s just the way it was.  When she finished and was working at her first tech company, that was just the way it was too.   Now she’s the one supporting the house doing something she loves, and my Dad gets a lot more time doing what he likes to do, and he’s happy.  And it’s just the way it is.

I’m going to school to get a degree so that I can work somewhere in the field of psychology.  Where doesn’t matter at this point, because for now I’m just going to enjoy going to school.  It’s just the way it is.