Today was my first day of graduate school. Or eighteenth grade. I like calling it that. Somehow it makes it seem less daunting and more like something I'm supposed to show up to in an outfit my mom picked out, holding crayons she bought for me. But that isn't the reality. In reality it was a 15 hour day. 15 hours isn't much time, but it is. Trust me, it is. But damn, it was a good day. I'm finally back in a place where I feel like I belong. I'm coming back to the same university where I did my undergraduate work and I guess part of me thought it would feel the same... but everything is so different now. I'm coming back smarter, stronger, less apologetic, more open-minded, with a bunch of diagnoses I didn't have five years ago. I've gotten married since I left. I've learned I had a chronic medical condition since I left. I've learned most importantly that the energy and love I've poured into my academic and professional careers is going to do ...
Welcome to the stories that have made and continue to make me who I am.