Going to Graduate!

Doing this blog in Green..... Why? Because Ohio University's colors are Green and White!  

I will officially be an alum of Ohio University this coming Saturday December 10! I am very excited proud. I really am! This journey was a hard one.... 

When I first went to college, back in the late 80's, early 90's, I was first a married woman, then a pregnant woman, then a mother of a baby. I had to quit school two years in because it was just too hard. I quit school to be with my family. I then focused on being a wife and mom. I had another baby. Then my mother became terminal. I took care of mom in our home until she passed away. Life continued and then a couple years after mom passed, I felt God pushing on my heart and breathing on me hard. I knew I had to go back to school. 

One day, I came home and told Brad, I'm going back to school. When he asked? Oh, Monday! I could not stand to have the pressure from the Lord anymore and knew I had to obey... so, I went to Clark State and talked to them, turns out the quarter was getting ready to start and I signed up! God provided. In so many ways! I was provided scholarships and grants to cover tuition for the entire time I went to school there! Blessing to being poor, I got grants!!! 

So, back to school for Sara! I changed majors as well. I changed from Elementary Education to Registered Nursing. I graduated in June 2002. Very proud then. It was hard! I had two young children and a husband that was a McDonald's General Manager who worked crazy hours! If it were not for my dad helping out at times and my grandma babysitting (even overnight!) the kids would have missed out on things and I would have missed out on some things for school! I studied for school at baseball, softball and soccer games! It was not easy, but I did it! I graduated with my associates degree in Registered Nursing June 2002.... and we had a great party too! 

Fast forward several years.... I feel God pressing on me again. Pushing me that I need my bachelors degree. Ok... I"m gonna do it. I check online and look at things... I schedule a visit locally with Ohio University and Wittenberg University to talk about their RN to BSN programs. What to do? God pushes and leads me to Ohio University. I enroll and start courses there, Spring semester 2015. 

It would be something to think that I just took my courses and graduated. But no. That would be someone else. I endured challenges. These challenges were even more than having two young children and such like when I got my Associates Degree. 

I had been in school a few days and my son moved back home. My son, age 24 and HIS two sons ages 9 months and 2 years. So, my empty nest became crowded. VERY crowded. Then my son had some problems. Some people know about it some don't. I am not completely comfortable sharing everything that happened here, but let me say it was not easy. On him, on us. It was rough. Holy cow.... We got thru that and I finished my first semester back in college. 

Fall semester 2015. I was taking 4 classes. One of my courses was statistics. Yes, statistics! AAARRRGGGG. A couple times I sat down with a guy at work that has his MBA. He helped me understand some stuff. I made it out of that course with a B! So... school is going along. My son and grandsons are still living with us. Still a bit of a challenge. 

Spring semester 2016. This is our year! My daughter will graduate in April and get married in June! Then I will graduate in December.... God said, yes, all this will occur, but... you will have more challenges. 
On January 29, we found the lump. On February 8, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. All of this going on, I finished my first course for this semester. 
March 14, I have my first surgery, a lumpectomy - sentinel node biopsy - placement of my port. I'm in the last part of my second course. During this second course, I also had multiple tests I had to go thru so that my cancer is treated appropriately. 

March 30, second surgery. Double mastectomy and lymphnodectomy. So, I'm in my last class of the semester. Trying to recover and heal. Finally finish this class and my daughter graduates as well! 

Then August 2016. I start my final semester. I am glad to be in the home stretch. I am also doing chemotherapy once a week! I feel like total poo and still work thru these courses. My final course will be a preceptor course. Thankfully my dear friend Jennifer who is a nurse practitioner has agreed to be my preceptor! 

Now... here we are... the week of graduation! I'm going to graduate!!! I am going to get my bachelors degree!!! There were people when I was diagnosed with cancer who told me, maybe you should take a break from school and just focus on your health. There were those who would have done that. I couldn't. I know me. I needed to continue. There are those who may not march in the ceremony. Not me! I have worked too hard and been thru too much to not march! I am marching with all those 20somethings. I worked hard. Thru family trials, dramatic changes in my household and fighting the battle of my life! I am marching! 

I am proud of myself. I have worked hard. So hard! We have had such financial issues this time. My family makes too much to get grants. Even when I no longer got paid from my job (which I still do not get paid from my job). (Yes, I did get financial aid, student loans. )  I kept on. I continued to fight thru my family struggles. Thru my surgeries. Thru my chemotherapy. Thru everything. I fought to get this degree and I GOT IT!!  So, I am marching. 

God has a plan for everything. When I was in high school, I wanted to go to Ohio University. I really wanted to go there. I wanted to major in communications. No one really encouraged me. My parents just sort of said, that's nice. My high school didn't do much for me. I took the advanced placement courses, but I wasn't in the top percentage of the class so no one encouraged me there. No one in my immediate family had been to college, so I had no one to direct me. So... when I graduated high school, I just went to work. But, all these years later, I am graduating from Ohio University. I really am! I cannot say how glad I am and how proud I am and how excited I am. 
I am decorating my cap. I have a new outfit. I am really doing this! 

Throughout all of this, my husband has stood beside me. Braden George Espich is truly a great husband. He stood by me years ago when I was in college. Then when I returned to Clark State, he stood by me and helped however he could. This time... Well, this man. He helped me and encouraged me. Even asked me, is all your homework done? That was always funny to hear. He drove me to Athens one Saturday to take a statistics exam. If I was not happy with a grade, he listened to me whine. If I thought that things were going well, he celebrated with me. If things were hard, he let me lean on him. Thru it all what I heard from him was how proud of me he is and how much he loves me. He pushed, he pulled and he stood beside me as I got thru. I could not make it without this man! 

The lesson is, if it's meant to be, it will happen. If you want it bad enough, you will achieve it. 
Life has tried to shove things in my way. My first degree was hard. This degree was even harder. Not just the courses, but the life that happened. But here I am. 

What is ahead for me? Well, I don't know, but when God presses it on my heart, I will follow it! 

For now, I am just proud to say I made it this far!