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June 09, 2005
Something For Me
Yesterday I walked into our local community college and dropped off my application. It's been a quarter of a century since I have been to school....that was a shock when I thought about it that way.
It was a bit daunting to walk back into a school with me as the student. Summer semester has already started, but this gives me time to get my transcripts and get set up for fall. I'm starting off simple for now. I figure I need to ease back in. Just a certificate for Medical Secretary/ Transcriptionist. It's only two semesters and I can test out of a couple of the classes (Keyboarding and Word Processing) and I'm hoping some of my Emergency Medical classes I took for my EMT certification way back when can count.
I never got a degree. I hopped around from one thing to another but never settled down. Part of the reason was because I could never pass the math placement test and was always told I had to pass the no credit remedial math class first, which I never could. I gave up. Then came marriages, kids....and well the real world...it's that old story.
What's prompting me to do this? Mid-life crisis. For a few months now I've been feeling the seeds of discontent with my life. I'm restless. I want something different. My kids don't need my constant attention. I'm bored with my work. I'm getting those "what have I done with my life" thoughts.
I've taken the last 6 weeks off to try to figure out what I want to do when I grow up. It hasn't helped and killed the checking account. I redecorated my daughter's old room, which now is my 'office'. That was fun, but didn't enlighten me. I threw myself into mine and my mom's gardens. Good exercise, beautiful flowers, but not a solution.
I'm beginning to realize that a mid-life crisis isn't a crisis, but a second chance. A second chance to look at where I've been and make modifications in my life. To again consciously set a direction in my life. Once again I have the time and freedom to focus on me.
It's been a very long time since I've done something that has brought this feeling of excitment and of being challenged in a good way. I haven't had any goals to speak of and it's good to once again look forward to something. It's a small step, but it heads toward reclaiming my life for me.
Who knows after I accomplish this, I might just brush up on my math and try that placement test again. I've always wanted to work in the health care field and now with the additional 25 years life experience, a little more backbone and a stronger will it doesn't seem so impossible. I'm thinking that the 'empty nest' might be fun after all.
Posted by aster1961 at June 9, 2005 07:46 AM
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