The Boy starts kindergarten.
The Husband will return to college after almost a two year hiatus.
And me, continuing with grad school. (21 credits down, 21 more to go - 7 classes to be exact.) This semester I registered for two classes as opposed to one.
Working full time and going to graduate school is not easy. Add a special needs child to the mix and it seems almost impossible. Well, not really impossible. Crazy is more like it.
Strangers and friends ask me how I do it. Family asks me why I do it. The answer is one in the same. It's an escape. I know - not a likely one, not a relaxing one as it adds just a little more stress with assignments and getting home late one night a week. But it's the one evening a week for myself. To do something I want to do. To be my own person - not someone's wife. Or someone's mother. Or someone's secretary.
It's a few hours to remember what I love to do. It's my time to do something that makes me feel better about myself, to improve myself. To block out the dirty dishes, the IEPs, the laundry, my never ending to do list and my endless pile of files at work. To talk with other adults about stuff other than kids. (Most of the students don't even have kids!) It's my time to be completely selfish.
Semesters when I take off or during winter/summer breaks, I find myself feeing antsy. Bored, almost. As if something is missing. It's become such a part of my routine, that my life without school seems empty. Aside from being something I want to do. It's become something I have to do.
Even if nothing ever comes of my MFA in creative writing because realistically there isn't much I can do with my degree. Sure I can teach but I'm too comfortable to start over. And there's too much at risk with a salary cut. Or I can finish my book and hope that Oprah puts her magic stamp on it. But until that happens, this degree is just for me.
Some mom's go to the gym. Yeah, I stepped on the scale this morning - I should probably try to squeeze this in too.
Some mom's go to the nail salon and treat themselves to mani/pedi's. Sigh...I should try to get to the salon more often too.
Some mom's go to the spa for a deep tissue massage. I think you know where I should try to be...
This mom goes to school.
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"Where Do You Go When It's Time to Escape."
How do you escape your reality?
What gives you reprieve from your life when it gets to be too much?
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AutismWonderland - written by Lisa Quinones-Fontanez - is a personal blog chronicling a NYC family's journey with autism, while also sharing local resources for children/families with special needs.