So I've come to a decision. I'm going to med school.

Ever since I was a little girl I wanted to be either a doctor or a lawyer. I was ambitious. I knew I was smart enough to do either one, and I wanted to help people and make a lot of money, so those seemed the logical options for a career path. The problem was, I was confusing ambition for drive, as my friend Jonathan put it one time. (I think that's how he phrased it, if not, I'm sure he'll correct me when he reads this. ;) ) Anyway, I didn't know how to make either of those dreams come true. Obviously, brains aren't enough to get a person through college, as evidenced by all the brilliant people I know who have flailed miserably once they stepped foot on a university campus.

By the time I graduated from high school, I had lost my bearing on which direction I wanted to take. In the fifteen years since graduation I've been through five jobs, two colleges and three choices of major, finally coming to rest in the field of Anthropology, but not at all sure what I wanted to do with my degree once I got it (not to mention two marriages, three children and several addresses). I have commented to a few friends that it's unfortunate they don't teach life skills as a prerequisite for graduation from high school, especially in the gifted and talented programs. I find more often than not that people of exceptional intelligence are not always equally equipped with common sense, myself being a prime example.

I've been wanting to get back into college for a few years now. I left school when I was pregnant with my middle child and for the past six years have been focusing on being a good wife and mom. My kids are old enough now that I need to shift my focus to leading by example. I decided to get back in school, whatever it took, buckle down, work hard, and get my degree. But I still had the looming question of what to do with said degree. Then I went to a Christian women's conference that talked about mission trips and medical residency programs in other countries and it clicked. That's where I need to be. That's what I'm going to do. I have dreamed for years of going to Africa, and this idea could make all of my dreams come true. I can go to med school, become a doctor, use my expertise to be of service to others in a professional capacity and in the mission field, and see the world. Just a couple problems: One, med school is expensive and I'll probably have to move my family or be away from them for the better part of four years to complete the program. Two, the incompletes on my record when I left school converted into F's when I didn't go back and my GPA was abysmal.

Regardless, I looked into getting back into school and found out several exciting things. First, IU Med School has a Fort Wayne campus at IPFW now, so I can go straight through from my bachelors degree into graduate studies without going more than a mile from my home. Second, because I'd been out of school for over five years, I was eligible to apply for "Academic Renewal" which means, if approved, the F's I'd previously received would not apply to my graduating GPA as long as I maintain good grades from here on out. I was approved and at this point I have a fairly clean slate with a 3.18 GPA. So I enrolled in this semester without knowing exactly how I was going to pay for it, but we're making it happen, and I start school this Monday January 11.

I have learned from Mike Dooley, Jack Canfield, and Marcia Wieder that when you have a dream, focus on that dream, and take steps - even baby steps - to accomplish that dream, the universe will take care of the hows and the unknowns. Huge thanks to them and to all my friends and family who have always believed in me. I can't wait for all of us to see what's next!